Bane of Severance
by xxIAmTheSkyxx
Summary: Xaros Skyloft is your typical orphan. But when new friends and strange enemies make themselves known, Xaros begins to realize that he is much more than he believes. Canceled.
1. Prologue: The Heart's Umbra

_**Woo-hoo a new fanfic! I've been sitting on this one for a few months, and now I finally have my computer back, so I can finally post this up! I'm really loving how my new story is turning out, and I hope you guys like it too! This is my first original story (the only KH similarity will be a few characters but none of their elements) so I'd appreciate reviews and see what you think of it! Half of the characters will be original, including my main character, just to clear things up a bit before I get any confused comments. Please enjoy!**_

**Prologue: The Heart's Umbra**

I once had to give up everything I had for the people of the world.

Now I ask you: would you do the same thing?

Probably not.

"Why should I?" You might say. "They didn't do anything for me. The world never cared about me or my feelings, or my hardships. They don't deserve anything."

In a way, yes, that's true. The world doesn't care for an insignificant speck of dust that is you. The world revolves on its axis, orbits the sun, brings rain and shine. The world just keeps moving on untouched by time.

The people of the world, well – they couldn't care less for one individual like you either. The people are human. They are vile, cruel, and twisted, and deserve nothing more than the Armageddon to snap them into their senses. But by then it would be too late for them. They'd be incinerated, asphyxiated, torn to shreds before they can experience life the way it should've been. They don't deserve anything less.

That would be the initial response.

Before you jump to conclusions, think things through a little more. You will realize that it would be the end of a world that never had a chance to right itself, as wicked as it had been. It's your world too – you can't survive without it. You don't want to die ignorant. Likewise, most people don't deserve to die ignorant. It would mean the true end of the world. No hope in saving it – no hope in saving anything.

Somehow, this hopelessness, this sense that everything is lost – it's the drive behind trying to save yourself. But you're only bringing yourself closer to the end despite your efforts. All the geniuses out there with their new innovations meant to make life easier – that's a lie.

Mankind is hopeless. It's the bare truth. And they all know it; in the deepest recesses of their minds – they know that they're doomed. All the positive outlooks that they seem to have on life are only the shadows of the truth.

How does – how _can_ – anyone save a world as cursed as this?

* * *

><p>I stared up at the starry sky without seeing it. The blades of grass wet with dew tickled my fingers. There was a pressure inside me at what I had just done – and what I was about to do.<p>

There wasn't any alternative, and my companions knew it, though they denied it with every fiber of their being. Typical for people I guess – they just don't want to admit that there wasn't always a way to fix things by their wont. We're human – it's a curse that you will never be free from, no matter how hard you might try to surpass its boundaries. You might delve into the most vile and disgusting ways to deny the fact that you're human, but it's no use. You will never escape from the eternally bounding rope of mortality.

"You're out of your mind," a first figure said, standing so he towered over me. "What you're planning might be the end of us all."

"Well, it's better than it being inevitable, isn't it?" I told him. "Besides, you already agreed to what I am about to undertake – and accepted the responsibilities and the risk that comes with it."

"How were we supposed to know that _this _was what you were planning on doing?" A second demanded heatedly, tracing a path on the dew-wetted grass. "It doesn't seem possible that you thought this through carefully enough –"

"I have!" I retorted. "I did think this through – and for much longer than you can imagine. You have no idea how hard it was for me to accept the answer – that my plan is the only way we can hope of ever succeeding – but we have no other choice. It's the only way that I – that any of us – will be able to survive until the time is right. The words of the prophecy only exacerbates the notion, so I'll be damned if you find another way out of this. If you don't appreciate how long and hard I've pondered my choice, then I'd love to hear any new fresh ideas."

Not a word came from any of them.

"That's what I thought." I drew in a deep breath and released it slowly in order to calm myself. "Let's get on with it. We don't have any more time before the Forsaken are on us."

A third figure sidled up, slightly taller than the rest of us. "You heard him, you two. Stand aside." Reluctantly the two figures moved back several paces.

A blaze of bright blue light, and so a gleaming silver katana pommeled with a jewel of deepest blue flashed into existence in the new figure's hands.

"You ready?" he asked quietly. I nodded, unwavering.

"Then let's do this." The tip of the blade began glowing with a soft blue light, like a miniature lantern.

"Don't you worry about a thing," he assured me. "We'll make sure no one catches on to your decision and that nothing happens to you."

I nodded. "I'm counting on that. I'm only doing this because I trust you guys with no reserve, anyway."

The figure said nothing.

"Oh, another favor before we go through with this..." I turned to the figure who had stood over me. "Please make sure that Umbraen knows of my plans...and that I'm really sorry."

He nodded. "I will."

A weight lifted off my shoulders. "Thanks." I turned to face the third figure again. "Go ahead."

"All right." He raised the sword so it was level with my chest, then he whispered, "Good luck."

Blue light illuminated the hillside as the deed was done and all was lost in the blackness.


	2. A New Beginning

_**Here it is, the first chapter. This was a difficult chapter to write in terms of content, because of everything I had to introduce about my new character. But other than that it gets the story going. Sorry if it seems a little long; I get caught up in the moment sometimes when I'm writing something I like :P**_

_**Sorry I took so long; the Internet kept distracting me. .**_

**Xaros Skyloft is stuck in an orphanage with no family or friends to call his own. Everyone there is afraid of him, and he hates them all. A strange new person comes to visit him day after day, but then that's when things start to get strange…**

**Ch. 1: A New Beginning**

_"The most incomprehensible thing about the world is that it is comprehensible."_

_-Albert Einstein_

* * *

><p>"Hey, Jar-oats Sky-left! Find a tattoo-remover yet?"<p>

I ignored them. The nickname was so lame it wasn't even worth getting mad about, though that last remark reminded me to slip my black fingerless gloves back onto my hands.

That remark stemmed from the fact that I had a strange birthmark on the back of my left hand – a birthmark by the looks of it, anyway. It was in the shape of a flame, like something you would see on a torch or a bonfire. The flame looked different though – it was split in half, and left side was darker than the right. Sure, it was interesting to look at, but I didn't like talking about it. Whenever someone asked, I immediately shut them out. Pretty soon I grew tired of the whole thing, so started to wear the gloves to hide it. For some reason, whenever someone brought it up I got nervous to the point I would start sweating.

As for the "Jar-oats Sky-left" remark, it was supposed to be a really rude pun of my name, Xaros Skyloft. I didn't want to know where they got the "Jar-oats" bit. It seemed too ridiculous. As for "Sky-left", that was because the kids here would look for any aspect to tease someone about, and for me it was because I was the only left-handed kid in the orphanage, not to mention the stupid birthmark had to be on my left hand. It didn't really matter that I was the only leftie, since no one notices unless I'm eating or writing – neither of which I do very often. But once it got noticed, I was constantly ribbed for something that wasn't even my fault.

I was one of the oldest kids in the orphanage – I turned seventeen just a few weeks past. There were only two others that were older than I was, two brothers whose names were Ardel and Fischal Aerge. Ardel was a huge thickset guy with short brown hair in a buzz-cut, and Fischal was tall, thin as a twig and just about as smart, and a shaggy mane of black hair that looked as if it had been blow-dried by an elephant. Ardel was the older one, at eighteen, and his brother was seventeen, just a few months older than I was. From what I heard, they were brought in ages ago, but no one even looked at them when they came to possibly adopt a kid. Not that I could blame them – if I were a soon-to-be parent I wouldn't adopt them even if they paid me.

But then again, no one wanted to adopt me either. Guess it's not really surprising. For as long as I remember being here no one seemed comfortable around me – not even the people who worked here. The older kids excluded me, the younger ones were so terrified of me they would run away whenever I walked into a room. They didn't even try to talk to me. Those jerks. They made me a pariah in a group of unwanted children.

The only person that didn't seem to be afraid of me was Sora Irino, and he was only a random guy that had walked into my quarters unbidden on my seventeenth birthday one foggy February morning, and had kept visiting ever since. I had no idea who he was, but he didn't seem to mind me at all. I was pretty suspicious of him at first, but several visits later I soon started to look forward to seeing him. He was really easy to be around, and that also lifted the dreary fog in my mind whenever I was alone.

Sora was pretty mature, he seemed to be in his twenties, but he managed to retain the face of a teenager – something I found astounding. He had untidy, spiky caramel brown hair framing a set of deep blue eyes that always shone, and he smiled a lot. In spite of his cheer, he wore dark clothes – a black and silver hoodie that he wore unzipped so you could see what he called his "trademark crown chain" around his neck and an indigo undershirt. He wore fingerless gloves like me, except his had gold trimming on the finger holes. His jeans were also black, and they were baggy, with zippers that ran from knee to hem, which were usually zipped mid-calf, and chains of a similar nature to the one on his neck swung from his right hip. He also wore simple black tennis shoes. In other words, Sora was pretty damn awesome.

I was in the waiting room, slouched on one of those cheap plastic chairs that squeaked whenever I moved. Ardel and Fischal had just passed by me laughing stupidly, slopping muddy footprints on the linoleum floor after trying to stage one of their "mud fights". Fischal had flung the insult at me as they trod toward the cafeteria, shouting excitedly to each other as they went, probably to start a food fight to make up for their inability to create mudballs from the rivers of mud outside.

I stared at my reflection on the window in front of me without seeing it – my spiky jet black hair, disheveled as usual, and the golden-yellow eyes glaring at the barely visible reflection. I stared past it outside the window, where the raindrops pelted against the thick glass like bullets and veil the distant buildings outside a depressing shade of gray. My spirits just sank lower than the stupefying pallor outside. It didn't seem as if he was going to make it today.

Sora visited me almost every day – even I was surprised at his dedication to someone he'd never met before. Several drop-ins later he hinted at knowing some of my history – which of course I asked him endlessly about.

I had no idea who I was, or where I came from. I woke up one day in this brick prison, only having my name and the feeling in my gut that there was something important that I'd forgotten to do and I couldn't recall what. I never told anyone about that, since no one really would have given a crap about any of it anyway, but when I first saw him I felt the urge to tell him everything for the first time. But I managed to change the subject before he caught on. It might seem kind of stupid, asking someone you barely know if they know anything about you, but it didn't feel weird asking him, though he was evasive when it came to my history. It irritated me, but I didn't push him when he got uncomfortable.

I heaved myself of the sorry excuse for a plastic chair and go back to my quarters, thinking that it wasn't any use waiting any longer. Just as I straightened and turned to leave, the front door slammed open so hard it caused the window to shudder under the force of the blow. Instinctively I turned to see who it was.

"Man, it's a nightmare out there!"

"Sora!"

Sure enough, Sora was standing at the door, completely soaked to the bone. He looked as if he had jumped in a lake on the way here. But somehow his hair was still spiky despite the profound lack of umbrellas.

Sora must've seen the look on my face, because he quickly explained, "My umbrella turned inside out and flew to nowhere just a few minutes after I took off. I didn't have an extra so I just ran here as fast as I could."

"Holy crap, dude; you look like you went swimming with your clothes on," I remarked.

"Not my fault that it's raining like hell out there," he retorted. He accepted a towel from our receptionist ("Thanks for that," he said) and kept talking as he started drying himself off as best as he could. "I had some good news, but since rain was on the forecast I thought I'd wait a bit, but then I realized that I couldn't keep it to myself that long, so I decided to come anyway to tell you, so here I am."

"It must be pretty damn good if you came all this way not caring if you drowned or not," I said.

"Aren't you just peachy." Sora handed the soaking towel back to the receptionist. His clothes were still wet but looked slightly better. He then swiftly jogged over to me, closing the distance between us in five strides. His trademark grin now stretched from ear to ear.

"Well, what is it? Spit it out," I urged. I knew it was going to be good, judging from his smile, which was huge even by his standards.

"I'm moving out tomorrow," he announced as if it were the best thing I'd ever heard. "After seeing you several times I decided that I needed some of my own space. So I arranged it and everything is smooth sailing from there."

"That's the big news that couldn't wait?" I raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "So you're moving out. Big deal. What good does it do me?"

"You honestly didn't think I'd be living all by my lonesome, did you?" he teased me.

It took me a moment to piece together what he was trying to say.

"No way…" I gasped, open-mouthed, hardly daring to believe it. "Are…are you for real? You're not screwing with me, are you?"

"'Course not. You know me better than that, don't you?"

"I do know that you suck at lying," I dropped bluntly.

"Well then, there you go. This is your last night in this crappy place that they call an orphanage," he clarified.

* * *

><p>I tossed and turned that night, too excited to sleep. Tomorrow I'd be out of here for good. I would have all the time in the world to ask Sora anything I needed to. This was still like a dream come true; it didn't feel real. I couldn't believe that this was actually happening.<p>

I had lost count of how many times I had wanted to run away from this hellhole. But at those times I had nowhere to run to. After Sora had begun visiting me, I even thought about running away to wherever he stayed, but that was a false hope. I wouldn't know where to go, and I barely even knew him, so I knew that it would seem kind of awkward. But still…it felt like it would be okay. For some reason, I felt like I belonged with him.

I flipped over, ending up facing my window. Right then a movement caught my eye. I sat up to get a better look at whatever it had been, but was only met with the moonlight and the endless sky of stars.

* * *

><p>"You saw something outside your window? Did you see what it was?"<p>

It was the late afternoon of the next day. After filling out all the necessary forms and whatever else needed to be done (I wasn't aware of the process of adopting a kid since I never actually saw it happen) Sora had taken me out to walk home. It occurred to me then that even though Sora was of age, he didn't drive. I asked him about this, and due to the meandering characteristics that conversations have, it turned to the topic of last night.

"You mean you're nineteen and you _still_ can't drive?" I exclaimed incredulously.

"I can drive perfectly fine!" he protested. "It's just that my brothers don't trust me with a car – especially after I took their Prius out for a joyride without telling them. They wouldn't talk to me for a whole week."

"You have brothers?" I observed, surprised. He had never talked about his family when he visited.

"Oh, right, guess I forgot to touch upon that small subject; I'm the oldest of three. I have two younger brothers, and they're identical twins. I told them all about you yesterday, as I'm taking you in and everything. Of course after hearing about that they decided that they were going to move in with me too…" He looked a bit disgruntled. "Anyway, right now they're already at my place and they can't wait to meet you."

Sora had brothers…not something I'd anticipated, but it didn't change my aspect very much. For the first time in my life, I'd have a family, lacking in parental figure as it were, but I didn't ask. It didn't seem too important.

I have a hollow laugh. "Too bad they couldn't pick us up. I'd feel safer after last night."

"Why? What happened last night?" Sora was alert, like he always was whenever he thought anything remotely dangerous had been near me, and I instantly regretted those words. It was nice of him to be concerned about me, I guess, but it was also kind of disconcerting.

"It's nothing big, really," I assured him quickly. "I just saw something outside my window, that's all."

"You saw something outside your window? Did you see what it was?"

"No, not really; it was too dark. It was gone by the time I tried to take a closer look."

Sora's expression turned dark. I couldn't fathom why; it was nothing too horrible. Before I got the chance to say so, someone stepped into our path and obstructed it. I indicated this to Sora, who was otherwise preoccupied. He looked up at the figure in front of us and his eyes widened in shock, then promptly proceeded to push me behind him.

"You!" he growled, clenching his hands into fists. "You have some nerve showing up after all this time!"

"Oh, come on, I expected a warmer welcome than that. Harsh, harsh." The figure tut-tutted. "You've really grown since the last time I saw you, Sora."

"Drop the act. I know what you're here for."

"Ignoring the pleasantry and all to business I see," he noted. "I guess you matured a little bit, but you're still as dense as ever. You know you have no hope against us."

"Say that after you knock us down."

"Ooh, what a sharp tongue you got. More impressive still," he said, then grinned underneath the shadowy cowl of his cloak. The only discernable features I could make out were his pale hands; the rest of him was completely garbed in a black coat. He had a brown leather belt around his hip buckled on the right, and his black pants were tight on him. He had a red shoulder plate on his right shoulder with a strange symbol on it, something I can't describe. It scared me more than you know.

What scared me even more were the harsh words being exchanged by these two. I had no idea what they were discussing, and I didn't want to know, but just from looking at him I knew that this guy was dangerous. Sora knew it too, but he chose to bear down on him with glares and tirades anyway. As unnerved as I was, I couldn't help but feel a prick of admiration.

The hooded guy kept talking. "You have no idea what we went through to find this kid. He's got guts, I'll give him that. Who would've thought he'd be hidden in a place as generic as an orphanage?"

I couldn't comprehend a word this enigma was spouting, but I wanted to know, so I couldn't keep quiet anymore. "Sora, tell me what's going on! Who is he?"

Sora didn't budge so much as an inch, his eyes still trained fixedly on the figure before him. He was either so focused on his apparent enemy that he hadn't heard, or he had chosen to ignore my inquiry. Regardless, he didn't reply.

The guy in front of us gave a mirthless laugh that sent chills down my spine. "How refreshing! So he did go through with that thrice-blasted plan of his. I can't say as I'm surprised. Quite typical of him, the little jerk."

Sora's eyes narrowed slightly at this comment, and I started at his influx of words. He spoke as if he knew something about me and my past. Could he possibly –

"Shut up!" Sora shouted, taking a step forward as if he wanted to throttle him. The way he glared at him, he looked…lethal. "You bastard; if you have the nerve to show your face to me after all these years, least of all for _him_, you're nothing more than a damn cunt. You're not going to take him. Even if you have to kill me; I'm not stepping aside!"

"What the hell is going on, Sora? Tell me!" I demanded. Their exchange was getting so confusing that my head began to throb, even though I wasn't even part of the conversation.

"So, you haven't told him anything yet, apparently," the figure said, completely disregarding Sora's words as if he was insignificant. I flinched as he turned to face me with a furtive expression. "How much more fascinating can you _get_, Skyloft?"

How did he know my name?

He then proceeded to reach into his coat; at that precise second I could've sworn that Sora's had glowed blue for an instant when it twitched as if he was anxious to hold a weapon that would cut this guy down, but it seemed more plausible – and sane – to surmise that it had been a trick of the sunlight bouncing off in waves from the worn pavement.

In that same second, Sora snatched my wrist and dragged me right past the hooded figure before he could draw his hand out. The two locked eyes for a moment as we passed him, Sora's venom-filled eyes met the figure's merciless ones.

All of me wanted to shake off Sora's hand and demand an explanation to this turn of events, but something in Sora's expression told me to lay off. I got a feeling that he didn't want to discuss what had just transpired. His eyes were filled with pain and wet with angry tears. I turned back to where we had left our oppressor. He had disappeared.

* * *

><p>The house was nothing special. It was small, not meant to hold a lot of people. It was a light shade of beige, and the roof tiles were dark brown. The lawn was wild; it looked like it hadn't been trimmed in weeks. A simple iron fence surrounded the otherwise small property, and terracotta stone steps led up to the front porch. Overall, a nice, quiet place to live.<p>

But the house was the last thing on my mind.

We'd reached the front gate, and Sora finally released my arm. It was red where he had held on, what with him gripping so tightly, so I rubbed the area to restore circulation. In the midst of this I stole a glance at Sora. He was clutching the frame of the iron fence, using it as a brace to keep his knees from giving way. It was a bad time to ask, and I knew it. But I couldn't stay quiet. Not after that.

"Sora, you have to give me the benefit of the doubt. You need to tell me what just happened."

I didn't really expect him to answer, so I was surprised when he replied wearily, "It's nothing…just a guy that I've been having problems with for a while…"

"Um…" I was caught off guard by the pain in his voice. "It…seemed a bit more than that," I pointed out uneasily.

Sora sighed deeply. "Damn…" He turned away, burying his face in his hands, and muttered, "Look, I'm sorry, Xaros…I'm really sorry, but…it's not such a great time, okay? I'm sorry."

His tone was very apologetic and his eyes were filled with torment from an unknown plague, so I desisted from further questions. "Well…okay then," I said. "We can talk about it later…right?"

He ran his fingers through his hair. He tried for a smile, but it was empty. "If it were only that easy…"

We stood at the gate in silence for an eternal minute. I didn't feel the need or the wherewithal to break it, not that I had anything to say. The silence wasn't awkward, but it wasn't exactly comfortable either.

"Xaros," Sora finally broke the silence. "We should go inside. It's getting late, and my brothers will be wondering where we are."

"Yeah. Okay."

I don't know what thoughts percolated his mind in that moment, but I was sure of what had dominated my thoughts from the moment that we'd been accosted by that stranger.

He knew something about me that I didn't. And so did Sora.

Trouble was, neither of them seemed to be willing to tell.

* * *

><p>No sooner had Sora touched the doorknob when it burst open, knocking him backward so hard I had to catch him so he wouldn't hit the ground. I raised my head to see the person who had opened the door.<p>

"Oh, man, sorry about that, Sora!" The guy standing at the door held his hand half-stretched toward him, with a highly contrite expression. I observed him minutely. He looked a bit younger than me, probably sixteen. He had golden blond hair, spiky like Sora's, except that his spikes were neater, more subdued and gently swept to the right. Like Sora, his eyes were blue, and just as bright, now filled with concern. He dressed somewhat casually; he was wearing plain beige jeans with a black belt, and his sweater, long-sleeved and thick, was black and the cuffs were white. A red collar was poking through his sweater. There was a chain around his neck too; it looked like a four-pronged star. His shoes were white with several red and black Velcro. I noticed that there was a checkered wristband on his left arm. From this observation, I took him to be one of Sora's brothers. "You were taking longer than we thought, and Ven was starting to get worried, so I thought I'd –"

Sora waved his hand away, and used my shoulder as a brace to stand upright. "Chill out, Roxas. I'm fine, honest – having a door slam into my face, it's snapped me awake, let me tell you."

"But I almost knocked you to the ground!" he protested.

"I'm okay, Roxas; stop worrying yourself over nothing. It was only a bump." Sora seemed a bit irritated at his brother's persistence.

"Nice brother," I noted in an aside to Sora. Before he could reply, his brother had just seemed to have taken notice of me.

"Oh, hey, you must be Xaros!" he exclaimed, grinning. "Glad to meet you; my name's Roxas! Hope we get along." He held out a hand to shake, and I accepted.

"With someone like Sora living with us, I doubt it'll be all that hard," I replied, returning the grin. He seemed a likable guy. As strange and fastidious as he appeared to be, I had a feeling that we'd get along pretty well.

Sora clapped us both on the back. "There, you're friends already. That makes things easier for me." Sora glanced into the house's interior over Roxas's shoulder and raised an eyebrow. "Hey, Roxas…where's Ven?"

Roxas suddenly looked uneasy at the mention of his twin, not meeting Sora's eyes. His face turned a bright red. "Um, well, he's…uh…"

"Spit it out, already."

"He's, um…touching the…you know…" Roxas managed to say as he shrugged sheepishly, an abashed and fearful grin forming on his tomato-like face. A look of comprehending wiped Sora's features clean as he understood what his brother meant.

"_Ven!_" he roared. "_You're dead, just wait till I get a hold of you, I told you to keep your hands off –_"

He stormed into the house, roughly shoving past Roxas, still shouting, and left the two of us alone on the front porch.

"What was that all about…?" I muttered, confused.

"It's a long story," Roxas said, then stepped aside. "You'll see Ven in a minute; Sora's scary as hell when he gets upset. In the meantime, come on in and I'll show you where you'll be sleeping. I'm sure you don't want to sleep outside on your first day here."

I nodded in thanks. "That's sounding pretty good."

I'd hardly taken five steps into the cramped living room before Sora emerged from the dark hallway on the right, dragging someone that I assumed to be Ven. Sora was right, they _were_ identical – I couldn't tell their faces apart at all. If anything, though, their outfits were the only way I could distinguish them. For one, Ven wore gray denim shorts that came down to his knees, and his crisp white shirt was completely unbuttoned, revealing a dark green undershirt halfway tucked in. His sleeves were rolled up so that the stiff cuffs were covering his elbows. His shoes were also black, with green stripes on the sides and white heels. All in all, he didn't really care how he dressed.

Sora now had him in a deadlock and Ven was gasping for air, his hands straining at the effort of pulling at Sora's arms in a futile attempt to free himself from the choke-hold.

"Okay, okay – truce! Truce!" he managed to choke out, his face turning blue. "I won't do it again, I won't; I promise! I'm sorry, Sora! Let me go, I can't breathe!"

"You damn idiot – Xaros is here and you're not giving a damn whatsoever, and on top of that you go and touch my things when I told you _specifically_ not to – you should set an example for Roxas, you're the older one, for God's sake –"

"Only by three minutes!" gagged Ven. "Besides, he doesn't – even need an example set for him – he's a damn nerd –"

"Shut the hell up!" Roxas cried, his face going bright red again. "Sora's right, you know, you should act more mature, I don't care that you're only minutes older than I am –"

I just stood there, observing the scene unfold with amusement. From what I was gleaning from the sibling argument, Ven was the older one, but Roxas was apparently the more mature of the two. Talk about a case of irony. This wasn't the first time that I'd seen Sora pissed off, and I deducted that catching him in a bad mood was not the smartest thing to do if you valued your skin. As easygoing as he seemed to be, Sora could be pretty intimidating if the situation warranted. Ven didn't seem to take this to heart very much, and it kept coming back to bite him on the ass, judging from the harsh words being shot at each other. I smiled despite myself. I was going to enjoy living here.

After several minutes had passed, Sora had finally tired of choking Ven, and released him. Ven pounded his chest to let air into his lungs. Roxas shot Ven a look of childish contempt as he stepped up to speak with me.

"That…wasn't a very good first impression, was it?" he began, and he scratched his head in embarrassment. "My name's Ventus, but I usually go by Ven. And, um, sorry you had to see that, by the way. I'm nice most of the time, honest."

Sora rolled his eyes at this last comment, but I grinned amusedly. "No worries. It's not every day the first I see of someone is of them in a strangle-hold. Consider yourself privileged."

"Gee, I'm honored."

"Don't mention it."

"Hey, Xaros," Roxas spoke up, and I turned. "I didn't get a chance to show you to your room before we were so rudely interrupted" – he shot an irritated glance at Ven, who was now being pulled by the ear back into the hallway by a still-disgruntled Sora who was ignoring his cries of pain – "so come on. It's over this way."

He led me through the same hallway that Sora and Ven had disappeared into. In the first room we passed, I glimpsed Ven getting head-noogied by Sora on one of two wooden beds, its covers in a heap on the wooden floor. We then passed the bathroom on the opposite wall of the corridor, and I asked Roxas if it was the only one in the house. He told me that there was a second one, conjoined into the room I was going to sleep in. I was surprised that none of them had leapt at the chance to get a bathroom all to themselves.

"You know, you guys really didn't need to – I mean, you barely know me –"

"Hey don't worry about it," he assured me. "You're our brother now, and it's the least we could do. Our rooms are comfortable, so don't sweat it."

I smiled in thanks and fell silent. I wasn't sure why, but paranoia began to creep into my chest. It felt like they were trying to distract me from something via these spoils.

It felt intentional.

* * *

><p>"Hey, Xaros! Focus!"<p>

"Huh? Ouch!"

I was knocked backward onto the weathered mat, the stick flying out of my hand for the tenth time. And this time, I stayed down. I was so battered I couldn't find the energy push myself back up. I was completely wiped out.

Sora walked over to where I lay and scratched his head. "Hmm…maybe this isn't right for you either."

"No kidding," I groaned from my spread-eagled position on the mat. "You guys are insane. You do this every day? For real?"

"Not much else for us to do, so I guess you could say that."

"Just perfect."

Here's what's going on – After a couple of days with the three, I learned that Sora, Ven and Roxas all had a hobby in combat training, and had set up a training ground in their backyard (which by the way is pretty big for such a small house) in which they practiced every day from dawn until whenever it got too dark to continue. They took breaks, of course, but their dedication to their hobbies was still staggering. In that time I saw that each of their preferences differed from one another.

Sora was more comfortable with close-quarters combat or, more specifically, sword-fighting. Since using real swords were obviously dangerous, he used wooden facsimiles, which he called "sword-sticks". I didn't know about him, but I personally didn't like being jabbed over and over by anything. Whenever I watched him in action, I was awed by the way he smoothly glided from one stance to the next. It was like watching a violent, choreographed solo dance.

Roxas on the other hand favored long-range, as in he liked to shoot things more. He told me that he used a plain handgun (an M1911 pistol, he told me) or – when he felt daring – an air rifle. They had a shooting range set up in the far corner of the property so he wouldn't hurt anyone on accident, though I felt it was hardly necessary – he was a perfect shot and he handled the equipment with amazing skill despite his age. The way his face transformed when he was focused solely on the target was impressive as well.

Ven was an anomaly – he focused on mid-range, a not-too-close-but-not-too-far fighting style, and as such wielded a rather large boomerang, which spanned two and a half feet from end to end. When he had showed me, I was puzzled at first. The boomerang was such a tact-on antique weapon – who would want to use it nowadays? "It's simple to use, and strong and light too, so you can throw it multiple times in succession without getting tired or worrying about it breaking," he'd explained to me. "That's good for me since I'm a bit prone to doing that. It's long because I could just hit something that was too close for me to throw this at. That's what the metal coating on the right end is for. I had it custom-made."

That was cool and everything, but they suddenly decided that it was a great idea to introduce me to their training, no matter how many times I refused for fear of messing something up. So I was forced to try each station of their training grounds against my wishes, each with disastrous results.

On the first day of the trials, I experimented with the boomerang, and after a few minutes of tossing and whacking I realized that this weapon wasn't right for me. I hit everything in the backyard _but_ the targets, and as if to add insult to injury, at one point the weapon knocked Ven on the back of his head on the metal end, which gave him a headache for the rest of the day. I apologized endlessly for the incident and he told me multiple times not to sweat it, although he refused to come near me whenever I was holding anything until the next day.

That day I practiced at the shooting range with Roxas, which immediately unnerved me before I even held a gun. I didn't know how to handle one, never having held or even seen anything remotely similar to it, so I tried really hard to convince them otherwise about letting me fire one. Unfortunately, I lost that argument. My first shot panged against the brick wall. My second grazed a tree branch that was stretching over the targets. The third attempt was the worst – I had somehow managed to shoot through a gap in the aforementioned brick wall and blow up a pipe in one of the neighbor's backyards. I was surprised that we didn't get sued.

And now, on the third day, I "fenced with sticks" against Sora, but you already know the outcome of that. I was completely flattened. I didn't manage to even touch him; I was down and out almost immediately at the beginning of each match.

"Damn, Xaros," Sora remarked as he slung the wooden stick over his shoulder. "You're a hard case."

"Tell me something I don't know." I didn't know how to take that statement. "Guess I'm not cut out for fighting after all."

"Hey, don't beat yourself over just yet; it was only three weapons." He paused and put a hand under his chin, musing. "But there must be something here _you_ can use…"

The major overstatement of the year.

The three of them stubbornly clung to the belief that it was because of my handedness that I constantly sucked. Since all three of them were right-handed, they had no extra left-grip weapons, which they said contributed to my awkwardness in the way I handled their equipment. But to be honest here, even if they did miraculously discovered something in the muggy contents of a storage closet that a leftie like me could use, I doubted that I'd be any better. The weapons they utilized just weren't meant for me.

Just before I could tell Sora that I just might as well be their towel boy since I couldn't amount to anything else besides, Sora's eyes suddenly shone with an epiphany so intense it somewhat alarmed me.

"That's it; I know just the thing! I can't believe I'd forgotten about it this whole time!" Sora faced me, his expression radiant with excitement, and continued, "It's a long shot, but it's better than nothing. Hang tight for a sec, okay? I'll be right back!" He then disappeared through the back door so quickly I was still forming the words that I wanted to speak in my head.

Ven came over to where I sat, his boomerang over his shoulder, apparently curious as to why Sora had looked and sounded so excited. Roxas was still at the shooting range, nailing the bulls-eye each time. I took the fact that he was wearing earmuffs so his ears wouldn't blow up from the bangs from the gun, coupled with the bangs themselves, as the reason why he hadn't noticed Sora's exclamation or his mad dash into the house. "Where's he off to?"

"No idea."

"Hmm." Ven absentmindedly twirled his boomerang in his hand like a baton for a few moments before saying, "So, is the close-quarters thing going for you?"

I shook my head and chuckled ruefully. "Nope. He killed me.

"Maybe after seeing how you handled our equipment, he caught on to your fighting style. I did."

"Yeah, I'm sure he did. He saw that I'm not cut out for combat and probably went to go get a visor and a tray so I can start acting as your towel boy."

Ven laughed. "That's a good one. You're funny. But that's not the reason, far from it. "

"Oh, really? Then what are you talking about?"

Here Ven launched into a word-by-word analysis of my fighting style. I had to hand it to the kid – as klutzy and scatterbrained as he was, he was smart when it came to his specialty. Most of the time I had no idea what he was saying, but I was impressed by the wealth of his knowledge nevertheless.

"You don't really have a grasp on using both your hands for the same actions. In other words, each of your hands likes to do its own thing, and just using one hand imbalances you, too. Both of them need to be occupied and doing something independent. Do you get what I'm trying to say? That's why you're not really on par with what we do. That handgun you need either one hand or two to shoot, and like I mentioned earlier it doesn't sit very well with the way your body moves, and my boomerang needs just one hand, which really doesn't go for you, and the sword-fighting – well, that's just out of the question. Your hands need to move together, and they're just not made for that. That's probably what he saw."

I thought about his closing comments. I had thought that there was something iffy going on between those weapons and me, but now that it was all laid out for me I could see the problem. My hands weren't in synch when I used the handgun and the wooden sword, and I'd felt strangely imbalanced when I'd held the boomerang. So what Ven had told me had made sense. I needed a weapon that was light and capable of independently occupying both hands or I'd be stuck as a liability the whole time I was living here.

"Hey, guys. What's going on? And where'd Sora disappear to?"

"Oh, Roxas." Ven turned to face his brother. "You finished with your shooting?"

"Yep. Man, I feel stiff." He removed his worn leather gloves and stuffed them roughly into his back pocket, then he sat in a cross-legged position next to me on the mat. "So how did the sparring go?"

I repeated the story to him hastily so nothing of note would register in his mind. But I should've known that Roxas of all people would catch on to things.

"Let me see if I got this right," Roxas said after I'd finished (and I can assure you that it didn't take long), "You blew up our neighbor's pipe, broke everything breakable in the backyard, Ven is now on your literal hitlist" – Ven shot him a dirty look, which he promptly ignored – "and you got an ass-plant on the mat." He paused. Then he continued, "So how's that feel?"

"Like I'm just a pathetic excuse of a fighter. I should go back to the orphanage to spare you the shame of living with a failure like me," I said bitterly.

Roxas smiled warmly as he clapped me on the shoulder. "Don't sweat it, Xaros; it was only your first time holding any weapons at all. You can't expect to be an expert at this right when you start. It takes a lot of practice." I only grunted in response. I halfheartedly wondered how long these three had been at it.

"He's right, Xaros," Ven joined in. "We were complete beginners when we first started. Sora, he did more damage to himself than he did to the dummies when he picked up his first wooden sword. He was breaking bones, getting bruised and lacerated left and right. It's a wonder he kept going. And you wouldn't believe how many times we had to pay for property damage when Roxas started off with his first gun. Once there were so many holes on the back wall of our house it looked like it came from a cork."

Roxas flushed at this revelation, the lashed back with his own counterargument. "Oh, yeah? Then what about the first time you threw a boomerang? You ended up knocking out an old man and he had to stay in the hospital for weeks when they found out he had a concussion! We had to pay the bills and everything!"

"But that was an accident!" Ven protested. "And besides, how was I supposed to know I was supposed to throw it at a certain angle?"

"There's no making excuses to get out of this, Ven. You were worse than both of us combined, and no matter what you say it's not gonna change that fact," Roxas said, smirking.

"Oh, shut up!"

I burst out laughing. I couldn't help it. The sight of Ven chasing his younger twin around the backyard, brandishing his boomerang over his head like a mace and shouting at the top of his lungs, was so ridiculous that I couldn't hold it in.

"For the love of God, you two, shut up already. The neighbors might report us!"

My laughing immediately ceased and the twins froze in the middle of the yard. I turned to see that Sora was emerging from the back door, sliding it shut behind him. I noticed that a black suitcase was slung across his shoulder as he approached us, and I wasn't the only one who did.

Ven jogged over to him and hovered around him like an annoying shadow. "Is that what I think it is? You're giving them to him? Don't you think it's a bit too soon? If I were you, I'd wait a bit."

"So you can steal it again behind my back?" he said with a raised eyebrow. "Nice try, but these are going to someone much more deserving of them than you are. You can't even use them properly. Now back off. I'm always nervous around you holding that loopy stick."

Ven looked seriously stung. "It's a boomerang!" he countered indignantly. "Really, stop treating me like a kid already, I'm sixteen –"

Sora silenced him with a wave of his hand. " All right, all right, sheesh. Give it a rest. Just let me give these to him and we'll forget this ever happened, okay?"

So _that_ was what Sora had been upset about the first day I was here. Ven had thought that it had been a great idea to sneak a peek at whatever was in that case, and Sora hadn't taken that so well.

"Sora, you sure he's ready for them?" Roxas asked, biting his lips skeptically. "I mean, aren't those the –"

"Yeah, they are." Sora said. "And have a little more faith, would you? This _is_ Xaros we're talking about here."

Roxas's eyes were still doubtful as Sora stepped up to me and kneeled so that we were eye level, unslung the suitcase and set it in front of him.

"There were left to me from a…friend of mine for safekeeping," he explained as he undid the latches on the box carefully. "But he's not around anymore, so…I thought that you might be able to put them to good use. He wouldn't have wanted them to collect dust on a shelf going unused, you know? So I'm giving you these, and I hope that you can use them."

After what seemed like an eternity, Sora slowly lifted the lid. My heartbeat went into double-time when I saw what was inside.

In the case, nestled side by side in black velvet, were two polished butterfly swords.

* * *

><p><strong><em>There you have it, the first chapter! Argh, this took <span>FOREVER<span> to write, stupid Internet and its distraction capabilities…but anyway…_**

**_I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I apologize that these chapters will be slow in coming – they're much longer than I anticipated them to be! ^^; Thanks for your patience!_**


	3. Blood

_**Whoa, lots happened in the first chapter, didn't it? If it feels like I'm rushing into it a bit, I'm sorry. I'm still kinda new to this whole plot twist thing. But anyway, let's get to what's going to happen here.**_

**Sora reveals his gift to Xaros – and Xaros is more shocked than pleased at receiving them. He doesn't feel ready for such a gift. Before he could refuse, they are interrupted by an old friend of Sora's and the atmosphere clears…until he leaves. Then things take a turn for the worse, when the precious gift gets stolen and only horror awaits them…**

**Ch. 2: Blood**

"_The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."_

_-Franklin D. Roosevelt_

* * *

><p>I stared at the gleaming silver blades uncertainly. Each blade of the swords was a bit longer than my forearm, and their guards were pure gold. The handles appeared to be covered in padded leather. The hilts were adorned with a clear, golden gem in the center, and the pommels had the same strange stones, but they were larger than those on the hilt and had a Star of David inscribed on its lustrous surface. It was unlike any gemstone I'd ever seen. But I wasn't concerned with that. What boggled me was that Sora was giving these to me at all.<p>

_He can't be serious,_ I thought feverishly. _There's no way he's giving me these. These look priceless! It's just not possible that he's giving me these. Just impossible!_

But as I continued to look over the polished surface of the blades, a strange feeling crept up into my chest: I felt relieved. I didn't know where the relief came from. Why did I feel this way? I was sure this was the first time I had laid eyes on the swords, but still, they felt so familiar…

A considerable amount of time must've passed since I'd laid eyes on them, because when Sora spoke it was as if it was coming from far away.

"Xaros, is there something wrong?"

My head jerked up. "Uh, sorry…what?

"You've been staring at the swords for five minutes. There isn't a problem, is there?" Sora looked slightly nervous now. I wondered what the expression on my face was showing them.

"N-no, everything's fine," I said finally, looking down again. "Just…overwhelmed. You sure you want to give these swords to me? I mean, what would your friend say if he sees you giving his swords away to a stranger? Won't he mind?"

Sora gave a restrained chuckle, like he found me funny somehow. "No, of course not. I think, actually, that he'd prefer it this way…no, I'm sure. He definitely would have wanted it like this. Better than lying around not achieving any purpose, he would say."

I still wasn't reassured. I stared back down at the swords again apprehensively. What would happen if I did actually take these magnificent swords? What then? They weren't clubs or wooden facsimiles. These were the real deal. I could do serious damage with weapons like that…I didn't trust myself with them. I couldn't.

Yet a longing to hold the blades in my hands was growing in me; it was so strong it almost hurt to resist the temptation. These swords were priceless, one of a kind…and dangerous. I would never find its equal in my lifetime, so why waste it? This was a privilege; I should see it as one. My low self-confidence battled with the urge to claim them as my own. But as powerful my desire to take up these swords was, I couldn't accept them. These should go to someone else who would be more careful – more responsible – with the blades than I ever would.

"Sora, listen…" Sora faced me expectantly. "I – I don't think–"

So quickly that none of us knew how it happened, the swords disappeared from the case and reappeared in my hands in reverse grip. I was so startled that I nearly dropped them, but I managed to hang on, feeling the utter astonishment on my face. But my surprise was nothing compared to Sora's and the twin's reactions. They were completely flabbergasted.

"Xaros – how – how did you –?"

"What the hell just happened –?"

"Did you see that – the way they disappeared – it was like they flew into his hands – that's crazy –"

"Yes, yes, magnificent indeed, worthy of applause; bravo, bravo," a new voice drawled.

In unison, the three snapped their heads up and focused on a point somewhere behind me. I whirled around and – to my chagrin – saw that it was none other than the same guy who had accosted Sora and me the first day. There was something different about him, though, but I couldn't place it. He was perched idly on the brick wall separating our backyard with that of our neighbors. How he'd gotten there without any of us noticing, I had no idea.

I glanced over at Sora uneasily, and half-expected him to go berserk on this guy since that's what he'd done last time. But Sora remained strangely unconcerned. If this was anything to judge by…he actually looked _bored_. He even rolled his eyes and sighed dramatically. Ven, Roxas and I exchanged wide-eyed glances. What was going on here?

"Give it a rest already, man." Sora stood, putting his hands in his pockets. "You tried that on me already, and I'm not falling for it twice. What do you take me for, an idiot?"

"Aw, that's too bad," the guy on the fence said, his voice sounding playfully remorseful. "You should've seen the look on your face last time. I regret not having a camera with me that day."

"Don't remind me." Sora stepped toward him, picking up the wooden sword that he'd tossed aside earlier in his hurry to bring out the case while he was at it. He weighed it in his hands before saying, "You know something…I might knock you off that wall just for that." Then with blinding speed he swung at him, fully intent on making true on his word. Just as quickly, the stranger whipped out his own wooden sword and blocked it; a dull _clack_ sounded at the two sticks met in midair. The stranger then leapt off the wall, easily clearing the six feet that separated him from the ground, and brandished his weapon.

"Oh, you getting serious, huh? All right, you asked for it, so I'll deliver!"

"In your dreams!"

Done mincing words, they began to spar. Neither of them managed to touch the other during most of the round. Their reflexes amazed me; they seemed to predict each other's every move and compensated with a move of their own, though neither could quite overcome the other. I was reminded of the fact that the swords were still in my hands when I'd tightened my fists after seeing Sora blocking the oncoming weapon an inch from his throat, so I laid them back in the suitcase, shut it carefully, and went back to watching the duel.

Ven and Roxas still looked confused, not that I could blame them. I was about as lost as they were in the matter, but I was too busy watching the match between the stranger and Sora to care very much.

As expected, Ven couldn't curb his curiosity for very long. "Would someone please tell me," he demanded exasperatedly, "just what the hell is happening here? Who is he?"

Sora and the newcomer stopped in the middle of their fight; Sora had been about to deliver a sideways thrust and the new guy was preparing to block it. The two stared at each other for a second, and then exploded with laughter. I couldn't see what was so funny about the situation, and judging from the bewildered expression on Roxas's face, he shared my sentiments. Ven, however, looked even more annoyed than before – if that was even humanly possible.

Sora noticed his brother's irritation but was unable to completely stop himself from laughing all that quickly. Sora finally caught his breath somewhat several minutes later, and managed to stutter, "S-sorry about that, guys – don't worry about anything; this is a – a friend of mine. His name's Riku Miyano."

"'Sup, guys," Riku said, raising a hand in greeting. "Hope you enjoyed that as much as Sora here did."

"Very funny," Sora said icily as Riku removed his costume. "I'm sure _you_ enjoyed it, didn't you? You seem to have an unfortunate liking to teasing me just because you're older than I am."

"Beyond words, buddy. Beyond words. And of course, that's not the only reason. If I didn't tease you, then that means I don't like you. And I can't have that now, can I?" Riku flashed a playful grin, at which Sora rolled his eyes irritably before walking away, wooden sword slung over his shoulder.

Now that Riku had the ridiculous cloak off, I could get a better image of him. He was slightly taller than Sora, and I put their age differences at a year at most, Riku being the older one. His hair was silver and hung past his shoulders, and his eyes were a shade of aquamarine. And I was starting to think that Sora was the most complex dresser here; Riku was wearing plain blue denim jeans, somewhat baggy but tighter to his legs than Sora's jeans ever were, and had black and yellow skateboard shoes. He wore a black T-shirt underneath his canary yellow vest, which was unzipped, and had sweatbands on his left arm. Other than that, he was just as normal as everyone else I knew (which wasn't saying a whole lot).

Sora returned to Riku's side, looked sideways at him and stated, "You have got one hell of a timing. You almost gave Xaros and my brothers a heart attack. Ease up next time, okay?"

"Xaros?" Riku asked blankly. "Who was that again…?" Then his cyan eyes found me kneeling on the mat a little ways away, and recognition crept across his mouth. "Oh! You must be him! The one Sora wouldn't shut up about!" Riku narrowly avoided the stick that was making a beeline for his head before continuing, "So you're the infamous Xaros Skyloft, huh? Nice to finally see you face-to-face after all these weeks! Man, did Sora talk about you nonstop."

"Uh, yeah. Nice to…meet you too, Riku." Honestly, what did you expect me to say to something like that?

Riku raised an eyebrow, and then rounded in on the twins. "So you two are Sora's little bros, huh? Didn't expect you to be twins, though. Who's who?"

"I'm Roxas," Roxas began. He'd been so quiet that I'd almost forgotten that he was there. "The red tomato over there is Ven. He's older than me by three minutes." He gestured behind him to indicate Ven, who hadn't moved from his spot, and whose face hadn't completely blanched out yet. His face flared bright red again at his younger brother's words.

"Damn it, Roxas, would you cut it out already?" Ven snapped.

"Cut what out? You're the one taking it personally, not me. I'm only stating the truth. Honesty is the best policy, right?"

Ven looked like he wanted to storm over to his brother and beat him up with his boomerang (which was highly probable, since Ven still had it tightly clenched in his fist) but Sora, sensing his brother's intentions, managed to cut in before Ven could retaliate to his twin's comments.

"All right, enough with the greetings, we all know each other. Now why don't we go inside and order some pizza. I haven't eaten all day and I'm starved. What about you guys?"

His words made me realize how famished I was. We hadn't eaten anything since early in the morning. And I mean, _early_. The sun had barely risen when we'd gotten to work. Pizza was sounding really good right about now.

Roxas took this as an opportunity to escape his brother's seething glare (he probably noticed that he'd gone a little too far; Ven looked like he was at the breaking point) by yelling, "I'll order!" and dashing into the house before Ven made a move. He made as if to charge after him, but Sora managed to calm him down by placing a hand on his shoulder to restrain him and gave him a warning look before winking. I guess Sora has that effect on people.

Roxas poked his head out of the back door and called out, "Hey, how many boxes are we going to order?"

"Six should be plenty!" Sora called back, and then looked over at Riku. "Guess you're staying for dinner, am I right?"

"Yep, since that's what it looks like. Money's on you though."

"Nice try buddy. After scaring those three half to death, you owe us. Besides, you get paid better than I do."

Riku let out an exaggerated sigh, and then grinned in defeat. "Fine. You win. I'll pay."

"Guys?" Roxas had poked his head out of the back door again. "What toppings do you want?"

"Anchovies and pepperoni!" Riku shouted before any of us had a chance to consider. We stared at him, and he just shrugged. "What can I say, I'm the adventurous type."

"Pfft, I don't care about that," I scoffed. "Just don't sneak any anchovies on my slice or else I'm going to hamstring you. I'm serious."

Laughter rang out, and in the midst of this Riku put a hand over his heart and the other halfway raised in a mock vow. "I do solemnly swear that I will not shove any form of Italian seafood down Xaros's throat, and if I do, God help me; I will let him slug me all the way to Mars if I sneak anchovies onto his slice."

I raised an eyebrow critically. "I'm going to hold you to that vow, you know."

Riku cussed then complained, "Damn; and it was such a good idea too!"

Sora gave Riku a friendly punch on the shoulder. "You know, I don't think it's such a good idea to mess with him, Riku. You never know what might happen, right?" As he said this, I could've sworn that I saw them look at each other with anxiety-tightened eyes for a split second, but it was gone so quickly that I just assumed that my eyes were making something out of nothing like yesterday, and disregarded it.

"For once, I actually agree with you," Riku answered him. "Xaros doesn't look like the kind of guy you'd want to cross, anyway."

I opened my mouth and was about to argue with them that I couldn't possibly be all that dangerous, when Roxas poked out his head for the third time. "Guys, pizza's here! We need to pay!" he announced.

"All right; I'm starving!" Ven appeared to have completely forgotten that he'd just about been ready to rip his brother's throat out, and rushed to the back door, almost tripping over a stray piece of equipment as he went with a startled, "Whoa!" The rest of us followed behind him, chuckling as we went.

"Hey. Xaros." I turned to see that Riku was beckoning me to come closer. "Quick, get over here."

I walked up to him with a puzzled expression. "What's up, Riku?"

"Can you keep a secret?" Riku inquired in a low voice, his eyes becoming vigilant as Sora drew nearer.

"Uh, sure." I became slightly unsettled at his countenance. I didn't like the look on his face. "Whatever you need."

"Okay then, listen up." He edged closer and whispered in my ear, "I'm sneaking anchovies onto Sora's slice. I already told Ven before he ran in, so he knows too. Be sure not to tell him, you hear me?"

I fought the urge to glance behind me in case Sora was watching. "Yeah. I hear you. I won't breathe a word, I promise."

"Okay, good." We drew apart as quickly and discreetly as we could, but we couldn't completely avoid suspicion. Sora walked over to us, his eyes narrowed.

"What were _you_ two talking about?" he asked with an apprehensive expression, crossing his arms.

"Oh, nothing, really," I lied casually. "Riku was just telling me to remind him that I was going to send him sailing into outer space if he put anchovies on my slice, that's all."

Sora's expression cleared. "Oh, I see. But you know, you can still do what you like. Not like Riku doesn't deserve being punched, right? Just putting that out there." He grinned and jogged into the house calling over his shoulder, "Cough it up Riku; the delivery guy isn't going to wait forever!"

I stared after him, unable to believe how easy that had been. He was more gullible than I had thought.

"Hurry, before he gets any pizza," Riku muttered mutinously, and gave a devilish grin before he pushed me along, both of us laughing at our shared private joke. Everything seemed completely normal, and gave no hint to the horror that would soon follow.

The swords lay abandoned on the old mat.

* * *

><p>Dinner was quite uneventful until Sora bit into his slice, and we all cracked up at his flustered and disgusted expression. When we'd explained that it was all Riku's idea, Sora promptly kicked him out of the house swearing revenge against him someday. Other than that it was perfectly normal.<p>

After dinner, my thoughts wandered back to the first day I came here. I slouched on the sofa, running them through my head.

The cryptic words the cloaked guy left about my past. Sora getting upset when I asked him for details. The tears in Sora's eyes as we brushed past our oppressor. What did it all mean? None of it made any sense to me, and nothing seemed to fit together. Why should my history be kept shrouded? Was it worse than I could imagine? Was it too dangerous for them to tell now? Or were they just being cruel? But no, Sora wasn't like that, that much I knew for sure… No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't make heads or tails out of any of it.

"Xaros, you okay?"

Roxas's voice pulled me from the depths of my thoughts. I flinched. "What?"

"You've been really quiet." Roxas sat next to me and appraised me with worried eyes. "Is something bothering you? Want to talk about it?"

I hesitated. So far neither Sora nor I went into detail culminating the events of the trip here to these two. It didn't seem like it would be the right thing to do, and on the other hand, Sora hadn't said anything to them about it, far as I knew. I didn't want to be the first to divulge the whole story, and Roxas seemed worrying enough as it was, so I didn't want to stress him out any more than I needed – or wanted – to. In the end I decided against it.

"It's nothing," I said. "Sometimes I just like to let my mind wander when I've got nothing better to do."

"Oh." Roxas knit his eyebrows, and for a second I was afraid that he'd see right through me. But then he sighed and stood up. "All right then, I guess I'll leave you to it. I have a few things to take care of myself, anyway. I'll be seeing you, then."

When Roxas stepped into the hallway and disappeared from sight, I breathed a sigh of relief and sunk into the sofa again. That was close.

I needed to clear my head, and I decided to go into the backyard to breathe in some cool evening air. As the back door came into view, I saw something that made my heart skip a beat.

A dark silhouette glided over the practice mat like it was some shadowy ghost, pausing in front of the suitcase that held the swords – _my_ swords that I had neglected to bring inside. I was surprised at the way I regarded them since I had tried to refuse them earlier, but now I wouldn't have it any other way.

Without any hint of hesitation, the figure scooped up the case and made to escape through the backyard gate. I bolted through the back door and ignored the pounding of feet behind me that I knew was Sora and the twins. I didn't care about them, the only thing that mattered right now was the fact that the swords were being taken; they were being stolen from me –

"Xaros! What's going on? What's the matter?" Sora caught me by the shoulder, his grip surprisingly strong. I tried to pull free but he was holding too tightly; I wouldn't be able to escape soon enough to get them back. I slumped backwards onto the grass, feeling as if all the air had been whooshed from my lungs. They were gone…they were gone, but I didn't want to believe it. It couldn't be true, it couldn't…

"Xaros, talk to me!" Sora demanded, jerking me upright. "What's happening? Why did you just take off like that?"

"…the swords…" I managed to convey after several attempts. "The case…he took it away, the swords are gone –"

"Over my dead body," Sora interrupted heatedly. "We're getting those swords back if it's the last thing we ever do. Which direction did the thief go?"

"He – he left through the gate – I saw him turn into an alley –"

"Damn it," Sora cursed under his breath. He straightened and turned to Ven and Roxas. "You two, you need to do me a favor. Roxas, you make sure that no one gets in or out of this immediate area so we can make sure the thief doesn't get very far. Seal it off, you hear me? Put barriers around the whole network to keep him from escaping. And Ven, you need to convince everyone in the neighborhood that nothing special is going on tonight. We don't want anyone being suspicious of what we're doing; it's too risky. You two got all that?"

Nothing that was coming out of Sora's mouth made any sense to me, but the twins understood. "We got it," Roxas affirmed. "I'll go on ahead." He then headed out the back gate and disappeared into the dark.

Ven, however, didn't move from his spot. He gave Sora a knowing look as he asked, "So, I guess this means that the gloves come off tonight, huh?"

Sora shot a pained look in my direction before nodding. Ven started to head off, but Sora stopped him. "Ven…" Worry creased Sora's eyebrows as Ven turned to face him. "Watch yourself."

Ven started at his brother's words, then smiled and gave him a thumbs-up. "I'll do my best." Then he left, too. I noticed that both of them had gone bare-handed.

"Sora, they didn't even –" I tried to say, but Sora cut me off again.

"Don't worry about them," he said, though I thought that he looked a bit nervous. "They're more than capable of taking care of themselves. Right now, we've got to focus on getting those swords back. That's our top priority, got it?"

"Uh…okay," I answered. Abruptly, Sora pulled me into a standing position and released me so quickly that I almost fell down again, but Sora didn't seem to notice.

"Come on, let's go," he urged, pushing me ahead of him, and I acquiesced without questioning him. I didn't need to. The moment the swords had been taken from me, there had been a constant tickling in the back of my head – as if the tickling was some kind of indicator of where the swords were.

"This way," I said, and immediately ran down the street and into the alley right at the outskirts of the neighborhood. Sora trailed behind me without a word. He was defenseless as well, not having brought even a stick. It was strange, but I focused on the sensation; I didn't need to hesitate at crossroads. It told me where to go.

I led us through the numerous twists and turns until we hit the last dead end, where we cornered the thief. Strangely, he seemed to be waiting for us. When we cornered him, I noticed that he was wearing the same garb as the guy who assaulted us on my first day. A knot tightened in my stomach.

"Well, now," the thief said casually. "Didn't take too long finding me, did you?"

"Oh, we have our ways," Sora said darkly. "But let's cut to the chase. You've got nowhere to run, so just hand over the swords before someone gets hurt. I don't want to be forced to resort to violence."

I shuddered involuntarily at his words. I knew all too well that Sora wasn't mincing words. He was true to what he said, and he meant every syllable, which meant that his subtle threat wasn't an empty one.

To our intense surprise, he laid the black suitcase on the cracked asphalt. I grew wary. What did this guy have up his sleeve?

He undid the latches right in front of us and lifted the lid, then began to admire the gleaming daggers.

"Impressive," the figure said in mocking admiration. "These blades clearly have been very well taken care of."

He reached into the case, and I wanted to yell at him to stop, but my voice got stuck somewhere halfway through my throat, and no words came out. I could only glare at him in numb revulsion.

He grasped the handles.

_No, he can't, he can't take away my swords, he can't…_ I thought desperately, and to my shock the swords disappeared from his hands and flashed into existence in mine in reverse grip. I was so surprised I hardly knew what to say.

The thief appeared to be as stymied as I was at the phenomenon. "Those blades…they are…but no, it's not possible –"

I stared at the swords tightly grasped in my hands, dumbfounded. I was so stunned that all I managed to say was, "…What the hell…?"

Having nowhere else to turn, I looked to Sora for answers. He hadn't even chanced a glance in my direction, as if the blade vanishing from the perpetrator's hands and reappearing in mine was a perfectly normal occurrence. All his focus was centered on the figure before us. If looks could kill, the thief would've been blasted into ashes; Sora's glare had so much venom. This wasn't the first incidence where Sora had looked dangerous to me…

The thief apparently hadn't counted on me taking the swords back, but that didn't seem to faze him. A newfound gleam in his eyes made my stomach churn in fear.

"Hmm, didn't expect that to happen…" He appraised me, his expression hungry. "No wonder the Master wants you dead…aren't you intriguing…"

Fear gripped my chest so tightly I could barely breathe. There it was again – the Master. Just who – or what – was that? The first guy had mentioned it, too…I wasn't sure why, but hearing that name made me tense.

"That makes things much more interesting. I'd love to test your powers…but I'm afraid that I'm not exactly cut out for combat." He held out his arm as if setting something loose. "In that case, I'll have your friend there do the honors of testing you for me."

After what seemed like an eternity, a gasp of pain split the chilled silence. The second it took me to find out that it had been Sora who had cried out was the same second that I saw him gripping his head in agony and fall to his knees. There was no culminating sound, but I could see that something was _very_ wrong.

I wanted to help him, but was clueless as to how I could go about doing that. I didn't so much as take a step toward him before he was on his feet and metal clanged against metal. I was in complete disbelief.

Sora had attacked me. And he'd been attacking to kill.

* * *

><p>I was just about to shout at him; why did he try to kill me just now? Before I could articulate my storm of protests, my attention had been diverted by the sword.<p>

And why wouldn't it have? It had flashed into his hands in a swirl of bright blue light. Any sane person would have wondered the same thing.

It was a long sword; it looked similar to a katana, except that it was longer and the blade was slightly wider. The blade of the sword glowed faint shade of blue, and the silver hilt was emblazoned with a strange blue stone surrounded by intricate filigrees. The pommel, like my butterfly swords, was crested with a similar stone to the one on the hilt, except that these were glowing with a fierce light. I didn't know what it was but I could tell that it wasn't any ordinary gemstone. It radiated power. I couldn't keep him off me for much longer without my skin burning raw-red.

Sora pressed me harder. He had attacked me out of nowhere, and after a moment's pondering, I thought I knew why. His eyes had turned completely red so that even his pupils vanished, and his face was blank and expressionless. I wanted to come up with a logical explanation as to why he looked that way, but everything jumbled up in my brain as I made a realization that made my stomach drop to the soles of my feet: Sora had somehow fell under the manipulation of our sword thief, and his will had been completely severed from his mind. I couldn't come up with any other deduction after everything I'd seen.

I couldn't hold him off any longer. I abruptly slashed to break his stance then leapt to the side, avoiding the sword as it sliced the concrete telephone pole that had been behind me moments before like it was butter. It collapsed with a thundering crash, making dust billow everywhere from the debris. I caught my breath as a horrible realization lodged into my brain: This wasn't a practice duel. If I lost here, I'd lose more than a match.

I rolled into a kneeling position as our enemy laughed behind the strings, hiding in the shadows of the towering buildings. "That's all you have to show for your strength, Skyloft? Personally I don't think that the Master should concern himself with a weakling like you!"

At these words, I tightened my grip on my swords so hard my knuckles turned white. "I don't give a damn about your stupid 'Master'! Let Sora go! He has nothing to do with whatever you're talking about! If you want to see how strong I am, then you shouldn't hide behind your little puppet as he does all the work. You're nothing but a coward!" I immediately knew that I was going to pay dearly for saying that, but I didn't care. I was only concerned about Sora. What if something happened and I hurt him?

Right then time seemed to stop.

"'Coward'…?" he said slowly through clenched teeth. "You dare…call _me _a _coward_?"

Sora charged again, and once again our blades met in midair. He swept his feet underneath me and knocked me backward onto the asphalt. As I hit the ground I saw Sora's sword whistling through the air, making a beeline for my throat. I had enough wit to roll away before the tip buried itself in the asphalt where my neck had been seconds ago.

Instinct then took over. No second thoughts, no deliberations. I fought to survive. I needed it if I was going to walk away from this fight. If he charged, I blocked it. If he slashed, I parried. If he broke through my guard, I sidestepped. Action, reaction. Every time I was too slow in reacting, I received a small cut in consequence.

Sora struck again and again, barely leaving any room for me to counterattack. The rage of the puppeteer was getting the better of him, and was only focused on watching Sora's sword slice through my ribs. He made Sora attack me relentlessly.

Yet, his uncontrollable rage would save my life.

Sora's sword disappeared from his hand in a flash of light when he managed to break through, and he seized my wrists in his uncanny iron grip, leaving me defenseless.

_This is it, _I thought to myself. _I'm about to die since I smart-mouthed a freak. God, I'm such a dumbass._

He kneed me in the gut and knocked me down to the ground again, pinning me to the spot. His grip tightened, and I knew that I had run out of options.

"_Die, you heathen_!" the thief wailed in pure revulsion. "_Die_!"

Sora pressed me down harder into the ground, making the sharp rocks dig through my jacket. I let out an involuntary groan of pain as one managed to cut through and embed itself into the small of my back. I was wondering how much longer I was going to last when I saw something that both relieved and frightened me.

Awareness had flickered into his eyes; I could see them widening slightly, although the red didn't wear off. He released my right arm and covered his face with his hands, shuddering and gasping with the effort of trying to fight off the influence controlling him. The veins in his face were popping up and sweat poured from his brow. He ground his teeth together. His grip on my left wrist, which had loosened moments before, suddenly tightened again. Then he did something that I still hadn't forgiven him for doing to this very day.

He twisted my left arm and swiftly plunged the sword into his gut.

The howl of agony that ripped from Sora's lungs then was the most blood-curdling sound that would ever hit my eardrums. It was made even worse that Sora was right on top of me and globs of blood were now splattering on my face and jacket. Sora's grip slackened and I was able to pull the sword free.

Suddenly I felt an empty space in the tense atmosphere. The puppet-master seemed to have left now that he had lost his only method of defense. The black suitcase lay abandoned. I made to toss away the swords that were still in my grip, but they disappeared in a flash of gold. But at the moment I didn't care about why that had happened. I didn't care about his sudden absence. I didn't even care about the blood soaking my clothes. All my attention was on Sora, who had collapsed beside me, his fresh wound exposed and pouring out blood.

He was breathing heavily, the intakes of breath getting more labored by the second. His eyes were half closed, once again his normal blue, but it was losing its shine quickly. Somehow, I knew that he hadn't hit anything vital, but his loss of blood was enormous. If I didn't stanch his bleeding soon he would die. I took off my blood-stained jacket and covered the wound, but it soaked through almost immediately. The flow of blood wouldn't slow…

"…Xaros…" I jumped a little at the sound of his voice, weak and tremulous as it was. He tilted his head to face me. Blood was dripping from the corner of his mouth, indicating that some internal damage had been done. "Is…he gone?"

"Yeah," I assured him, my voice cracking. "He's gone…you're safe now."

"That…that's good…" He looked skyward again, looking content.

The sight of Sora appearing to be so weak and helpless, on the brink of death, hit me like a sledgehammer. My mind wasn't prepared for the onslaught of terrifying images that now shot through every crevice of it. My body shook with the effort of keeping the emotions at bay. I had to hold it in, for his sake…

Sora faced me again, this time with pain and guilt inscribed on his features. "Xaros…did he…what did he make me do? Did I…hurt you?" He gasped in pain.

Anger and irritation hit me like a whiplash. He was concerned about _me_? He was the one bleeding to death and he was the one wondering if _I_ was okay?

"Don't you dare waste your energy worrying about me," I demanded, my voice shaking. "You need every ounce of strength you can get. You need to rest."

His glazed eyes assessed me for a moment. Then he shut his eyes. "Damn…it hurts…" he whispered, the agony breaking through. "It hurts so much…"

"Don't move, Sora. You'll be fine."

"I don't know…how much longer…I can stand this…the pain…I can't stand it…" Tears formed in his eyes and ran down his cheeks, washing away blood in tiny trails.

"It's okay, I've got you." I took his hands; they were ice-cold. Even as I spoke the color was draining from his face. "You'll be okay, Sora. I won't let you die on me."

He'd lost too much of his strength to manage anything more than a smile at my words. Then Sora's eyes began to close as he whispered, "Tired…so tired…"

"No, Sora!" I cried. "You can't fall asleep. You'll never wake up again! Stay awake, please; Sora, stay awake!"

I wished I knew what to do…what was I supposed to do?

"Sora! Xaros!" That was Ven…somehow he had found us.

Even in his state of torpor Sora heard his voice. Instead of sounding relieved like he should've been, his tone was nothing short of terrified. "No…no, Ven stay away – stay away –"

"Sora, what's –"

"Xaros, you've got to tell him – keep him away from me – please – Roxas…get Roxas –" Sora tried to get up, but his legs failed him and he collapsed again.

"Why?" I asked frantically. "Why can't Ven help? I don't even know where to look for Roxas –"

"It doesn't matter – keep Ven from seeing me like this, he's –"

His words came too late. Ven rounded the corner and froze. His eyes widened in pure terror as he saw that we were both covered in blood. He took one look at us, covered his face as he fell to his knees in unmistakable fear and screamed, "_Noooooooo!_"

"…No!" More tears dripped from his eyes as he watched his brother sink into panic. "Ven – no –"

"Wha – what's wrong with him, Sora?" I asked him, panic in my voice. Ven screamed at the sight of blood…was it possible that he –

"Go to him, Xaros – hurry –" Sora gasped in pain in his second attempt to sit up, and collapsed again. He covered his wound to stanch the bleeding and ease the pain. The blood trickled through his fingers. "I…I can't move…you need to go – I'll be okay – Roxas will be here soon, just go to him – quick –"

Sora was clearly anything _but_ okay. But his tone and countenance, both wild with worry, made me swallow my rebuttal and I hurried over to Ven, who was crumpled on the ground, still covering his face and screaming.

I was unsure of what to do. I knelt, then hesitantly put my hand on his shoulder and whispered, "Ven…it's okay, it's alright…I'm here…" I didn't know what else to do.

Ven didn't react for a few moments, still convulsing in fear.

Suddenly he wrapped his arms around me for comfort, and whimpered, "Blood…the blood…there's so much blood…make it go away…make it stop…" Then he broke down into hiccupping sobs into my shoulder, clutching my sleeves tightly.

Then Roxas came into the alley and saw what had transpired. As he beheld the scene his eyes filled with pain. I met his tortured gaze for a few moments, then muttered, "Roxas…I've got Ven. Don't worry, he'll be fine. Go take care of Sora."

Telling Roxas not to worry was like telling him to stop breathing, but he understood. He nodded and headed over to where Sora lay.

I pulled Ven closer, patting him on the back to calm him down. His sobbing eased somewhat, but he kept shivering, and didn't release his hold on my arms.

I chanced a glance at Roxas and Sora. Roxas was acting as a crutch for Sora, who leaned heavily against him, his complexion pale, and still weak from his loss of blood. The deep cut on his stomach had somehow disappeared. I wondered how something like that had happened, but because of the sullen state I was in, I was just glad that Sora wasn't losing any more blood.

How had it come to this? This wasn't right. We were supposed to be happy today, sharing jokes, teasing each other. And here I was in a dark alleyway watching my friend bleed to death by my own hand and feeling his brother tremble in fear of blood beneath my arms. How did such a perfect day go so wrong?

Still in my embrace, Ven started to whisper more words, his tear-wet eyes still closed.

"Father…I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…"

* * *

><p><em><strong>Second chapter…done much quicker than I thought, and I'm very satisfied with it. I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I had writing it.<strong>_

_**And yeah I know, I just noticed that I'm really mean to Ven. I'm sorry, he just somehow ends up getting the worse end of the stick. I don't mean to do that, honest! If you're a fan, please don't hate me for doing that! _**_


	4. Taboo

_**Geez, it's only the third chapter, and Sora came close to death and Ven has hemophobia. Things will mellow out a little in this chapter, I hope. Here you see Sora getting treated for his injuries and Roxas caring for all three of our fallen friends. You also find out a few important things here about Ven, which we'll touch upon next chapter.**_

**Sora is under house arrest owing to his need for recovery after he'd stabbed himself in the gut. Ven, having wept to unconsciousness the very day Sora had almost lost his life, still hasn't awoken from his sleep, now in a state of stupor. When Roxas reveals this fact to Xaros, Xaros manages to come up with a possible theory and a cure. The only qualm is whether he was right or not.**

**Ch. 3: Taboo**

"_There's nothing as safe as ignorance — or as dangerous."_

_-__Nero Wolfe__ in __The Squirt and the Monkey__ (1951) by __Rex Stout_

* * *

><p>The following week was very subdued. The atmosphere of the house was eerily still.<p>

It was evening. I lay in my bed, still peppered with bandages. The cuts on my arms and face had been worse than they appeared, so Roxas had patched me up with his personal First Aid kit. He told me that it would be a while before the wounds closed, so I should keep on the bandages for the rest of the week. He also sternly warned me not to remove them myself, since I wouldn't know exactly when to take them off and that I probably would without him knowing since they itched so much. I quailed under his pressuring gaze and fervently agreed to avoid laying a fingernail on my bandages. I didn't know where Roxas had picked up so much about First Aid, but it came in handy, and I didn't question his decisions.

The events of last week were still haunting every corner of my brain, and I couldn't find the energy or the interest to find something to do to get my mind on something else. I wondered if the horror of that night would ever go away. My mind seemed to have set an alarm that went off every five minutes and filled my head with the images of Sora with a bloodied gut and Ven unconscious in my arms. This whole week I've been trying to get those images out of my head, but I should've known that an event that traumatic would never wear from my memory.

I could hear murmuring voices on the other side of my door as if from far away, and I knew it was the nurses come to check up on Sora for the final time.

He had vehemently refused to be admitted to a hospital, insisting that he needed to stay home, no matter what I could say. To my surprise, Roxas sided with him; he said that they could call nurses every once in a while so they could check up on him. Since I had no rebuttal to this idea, and since I couldn't come up with a better one without Sora holding a grudge against me, I agreed.

And it's been working out so far. There had been a tense moment where one of them asked how Sora had lost so much blood when there wasn't a cut to be found, but Roxas had been one step ahead, showing them the cleverly bandaged abdomen that he had procured earlier, making it look like a genuine wound. After that fiasco, they had been arranged to visit every other day this week until his blood level was normal again. Sora had been instructed to refrain from moving too much, to which Sora responded grudgingly. He didn't take very well to the news, but he didn't argue. He didn't leave his room all week. I guess he didn't want to hurt himself or worry us any more than he had already.

At one point one of the nurses tried to take off Sora's gloves to increase circulation, but Roxas wouldn't let them touch either of them. I was puzzled by Roxas's actions, but I knew better than to ask. He'd looked so flustered he probably would have tried to knock out that same nurse if he tried any harder, and I didn't want to be a victim of his outbursts.

There was a sudden bustle of activity and the sound of footsteps retreating down the hall. I heard the front door slam shut, and I knew that the nurses had left. I hoped that meant that Sora was going to be fine.

I swung off my bed and stood in the middle of my room for a few moments, unsure of what I should do now, and decided to talk to Roxas about Ven. I couldn't suppress my curiosity anymore.

Ven had cried himself unconscious the day Sora had nearly been smote by my hand and his blood had covered the ground. He still hadn't woken, which probably meant that the sight of so much blood – especially that of his elder brother – had really damaged him psychologically. Roxas managed to keep the knowledge of Ven's presence in the house from the nurses by keeping the door to their room closed at all times. When he had first told me of his plan I was confused, but he told me that Ven needed to sleep it off more than anything, and the nurses would only make it worse. He didn't elaborate farther than that, but I trusted his judgment. Twins would know each other better than anyone else. But sometimes I got the feeling that Roxas looked anxious when he thought no one would notice.

I found him in the living room, lying on a couch. I deigned to broach the subject to without much disturbance. I didn't really expect him to divulge such a backstory, but he surprised me. He told me that I deserved to know; since I had comforted Ven when'd he'd been paralyzed in fear by the sight of so much carnage, it would be wrong to keep such a story from me.

"But the thing is…" he stalled, hesitating. "I can't tell you anything. Not me. I-I'm not allowed to. You'll need to ask Sora when he's awake."

"Why can't you tell me? You're his brother just as much as he is!"

"Look, I know; it's just that…" Roxas looked uncomfortable. "I…I kinda promised to Ven…that I wouldn't say anything about his hemophobia to anyone. But not Sora. He's not bound by any promise. So he can tell you."

"Oh…" I was slightly taken aback. "It…it must be bad, if he made you promise like that…"

"It's just…I can't even say it," he confessed, covering his face with his hands. "Even if I didn't promise…it's not something I like to remember…I'd break down even before I get started…"

The way Roxas looked right now…his face in his hands, sighing deeply, the weight of his brothers' predicaments heavy on his shoulders…he looked much older, and much more tired than usual. I felt bad for even bringing up such a touchy subject.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled. "I didn't know that it was so personal. I won't ask again, I promise."

"No, it's…it's fine," he replied wearily after a few moments. "I knew you would ask sooner or later; it was inevitable. Just wait until tomorrow. He'll be awake by then. He'll tell you everything."

* * *

><p>Later that night, I sat in the twins' room next to Ven's bed while Roxas checked up on Sora again. He was still asleep. I was getting worried; would he ever wake up? My mind again flashed back unwillingly to the events of last week:<p>

_"__Noooooooo!__"_

_"Ven…it's okay, it's alright…I'm here…"_

_"Blood…the blood…there's so much blood…make it go away…make it stop…" _

_"Father…I'm sorry…I'm so sorry…"_

At the end, when he'd finally fallen unconscious, he had uttered that last sentence about his father. Did that have something to do with his fear of blood? Something that involved his father? Come to think of it…Sora never mentioned his parents out of all those times I'd seen him before he had taken me in. Was there something he didn't want to tell me about his mother or father? It didn't seem at all like a touchy subject, but after last week I thought I'd believe anything. Everything seemed so…unreal. It still did, to be honest.

I went back to staring down at Ven's sleeping form. He looked utterly peaceful, sleeping like he had no other care. I wondered what he was dreaming about.

I sat there for thirty more minutes, but still he didn't stir, so I decided to leave him to let him rest. There wasn't any more point sitting by his bed if he wasn't even conscious. I stood, and walked over to the door and closed it quietly. Then I headed to my room.

I needed to rest before anything else happened.

* * *

><p>I didn't want to get out of bed. I just wanted to lay here and never get up again, wanted the worries of the past week to dissolve into nothing. I wanted everything to go back the way it was, the way it had been before everything changed because of a stupid mistake I made that almost cost Sora his life and Ven his mental health. The way it should have been.<p>

Not like this.

Not like this where I hadn't even been the one to pay for my blunder. I should be the one bedridden from loss of blood; I should be the one unconscious from the sight of crimson fluids. But of course the world doesn't work the way you want it to. No matter what you ask of it you have no idea what's really going to happen. The world doesn't give a damn about you. It just goes about its business, and if you die, the world doesn't care.

I figured that there was no point in stalling any longer. I had to take things as they came. Like any person, I was just a victim of the world. I couldn't do a damn thing to change that.

I sighed and heaved myself off of the bed. I needed to see Roxas to see if I could get the bandages removed today. I've had them longer than I could stand, and I wasn't feeling sore anymore, anyway. I wasn't going to keep them on longer than I needed to. I was reaching for the doorknob when the door suddenly opened and I was face-to-face with Roxas. We almost knocked into each other in surprise.

"Xaros! You're awake!" Roxas exclaimed, startled. "I was starting to think you'd sleep through the whole day."

"Yeah, well, I didn't want to stay in bed any longer, and I had a few things on my mind. Do you think you can get rid of these bandages now? They're more irritating than you can believe."

"Sure. I guess it's about time we removed them. Come on; let me get those off for you. Sit on the bed."

I obliged, and he methodically removed each of them, folding them up carefully and tossing them in a nearby trash bin. I sat idly, staring out the window that showed the backyard at the sky as he worked.

"Uh, Xaros?" Roxas's voice pulled me out of my abstraction after a few moments.

I looked over at him. "Hmm?"

"I'm all done with the bandages. Try to avoid overexerting yourself for the rest of the day today, okay?"

"Yeah, sure." I raised an eyebrow as I waited for him to go on. "Anything else?"

"What are you talking about? That's everything." He didn't look me in the eyes as he stood.

"Don't hide it from me, Roxas; I know you've got something else to tell me. Just go ahead."

He looked stunned. "What? B-but how –"

I shrugged. "Just guessing."

Roxas was silent.

"If you don't want to say it just now, then that's fine with me," I assured him. "I just wondered if you had something to say, that's all."

With a sigh, Roxas fell back on the bed, rumpling the covers underneath him. "Might as well tell you now, since you saw through me that quick. Guess there's no hiding it from you, Xaros. You're right. I did have something to say to you. Actually, two things."

"And they are?"

Roxas sat up and elaborated, "Sora was up long before you were, and I took the liberty of talking to him about the conversation we had yesterday. I had a hard time convincing him, but he eventually caved. I told him that you'd figure out sooner or later, what with you living with us and everything, so there was no reason to keep it from you. And besides, we owed you that much at least, since you helped Ven calm down even though you had no idea what was happening."

"You didn't need to go and say that," I muttered, embarrassed. "So…I'm going to get the backstory today?"

"Well, more or less," he allowed. "He's waiting for you now. Especially after I told him…" Roxas paused, unwilling to go on, and I got the sense that the conversation was about to take a turn for the worse.

"Told him what?"

Roxas leaned forward and rested his arms on his thighs, looking down. Then he revealed, "The second thing I was going to tell you. Ven…he's awake."

I was instantly alert. "You for real?" I gasped. It sounded too good to be true. "That's great!"

"Well…not really," he admitted, and bit his lip. "There's…something is wrong with him."

That didn't sound good. I had had a feeling that there had been a double meaning in his words. "What is? What's wrong?"

"He's become like a vegetable. He's not responding to any outside influence. I've tried everything I could think of, but nothing's working," he said, close to tears. "Nothing like this has happened before. I mean, we all knew that he was afraid of blood and we've seen what happens when he sees it, but he's never reacted like this. Never."

I was horrified. Ven was close to being a human vegetable? How could just fear of blood cause something so awful?

"And…how does he normally deal with his hemophobia?" I asked uneasily.

"Normally, he would just freeze up and hyperventilate until we took him away from the blood or wiped it away. Then he'd act like nothing happened." He shifted in position. "Sometimes, once in a blue moon, when he sees a large amount of blood all at once, he'd lose his head and fall unconscious for a day or two. Then he'd wake up not remembering what he saw."

"But…shouldn't that have been what happened last week?"

"Yeah, that's what I figured at first. But he'd been asleep for so long I was starting to get anxious. I didn't want to worry you, Xaros, after everything you did for him, and I didn't want to stress Sora either since he needed to focus on recovering. That's why I didn't tell you the truth," Roxas finished, looking guilty.

"How – how long has he been like this?" I asked him, still rattled.

"This is the third day…Xaros, I – I don't know what to do…" Roxas sighed, covering his face with his hands again. "I don't know what I should do…what if he stays like that for the rest of his life because I didn't know how to help him? It'll all be my fault."

I didn't know what to say. Why would last week's fainting episode differ from any other he had experienced before? Unless…

Then a thought occurred to me.

"Roxas." He lifted his head from his hands, his expression one of torment. "Roxas, listen, I need to ask you something. Do you think you can compose yourself enough to answer me coherently?"

After several tense moments, he nodded, and stared at the wooden floor again, waiting for me to speak.

"I'm just wondering…each time Ven saw blood…" He lifted his head again to face me, listening to my words, wondering what I was trying to say. "Was the blood…did it ever come from you or Sora?"

His eyes widened slightly; my question had apparently caught him off-guard. Then he knit his eyebrows, contemplating. After a few moments, he shook his head as he answered, "No…not that I remember. It was always someone else's blood."

"There, maybe that's the reason why."

"Wh-what are you getting at?" Roxas was shocked.

"From what you're telling me," I began, choosing my words carefully. "He's never seen you or Sora bleed, because you two know about his hemophobia and you're extra careful around him. Maybe since you guys are so close, seeing all that blood from Sora might have had a much worse effect on him than if someone else, let's say, I got stabbed instead. Then he probably would've had the normal reaction of passing out for a short number of days."

Roxas looked disbelieving. "You think that's it?" he asked me slowly. "You really think that it has something to do with the three of us being so close? Do you suppose that maybe…" He choked up for a moment before going on, "…it's because that he was terrified of seeing Sora almost bleed to death because he thought he would lose him, on _top_ of his hemophobia? Is that what you're saying?"

"That's just what I'm guessing. It would explain a whole lot of things, right? Think about it. Most of the blood on me and on the ground was Sora's, not mine. But he didn't know that. He was looking for comfort and to deny that his brother was the one bleeding so badly. He didn't want to see it so much that he clung to me, even though I was covered in blood too."

Roxas's eyes burned with hope, and I could see that he was longing to believe my claim. "If – if that's true, then – then what can I do to make him aware of us again?" he asked desperately. "Can we do anything?"

"Well, maybe…since Sora should be fine enough to walk around on his own now, you can tell him that he should go see Ven later today. He was the one losing blood so profusely, after all. Maybe having Sora there will bring him back to us. It would relieve him more than you know to see that Sora's still alive."

Relief – profound relief –etched into Roxas's face as I spoke these words. The worry lifted away, his haggard appearance from all the stress that he had to endure the past week dissolved. He looked like a different person – the way he always looked when concern wasn't wearing him down. Then Roxas did something that was completely out of character for him.

He locked me into a tight hug.

I was startled. "Roxas –" I began, but I didn't get the chance to finish.

"Thanks, Xaros," he said thickly, and his voice cracked, his arms still around me. "If you weren't here I don't know what I would've done. I would have completely given up…I'm so glad Sora found you and brought you to us…or else I'd be all alone now, and I wouldn't know what to do with myself. I-I'll do anything to make it up to you – anything. I'm just…I'm just so glad he's going to be okay…Thank you…"

"Hey…Roxas…" I put my hands on his shoulders, and he finally pulled away, his eyes glistening with tears. "Roxas, you don't need to do anything…it's only natural to try and help family, right? So don't worry about it, okay? It…it was the least I could do." I looked down, not wanting him to see the red flush on my face.

Roxas suddenly shook underneath my hands, and I turned back to him. He was crying.

"Roxas…"

"Thank God you're here…" he tremored. "Thank God…"

"Hey, it's…it's okay. Stop crying, Roxas…everything's going to be fine…" I pulled him close to me this time, and his sobbing intensified. I patted him on the back reassuringly.

"I'm so glad you're here…just so glad…" His tears wouldn't slow.

I smiled, suddenly understanding. I let him cry. He was crying out of pure joy, pure relief that his twin was going to be okay. I couldn't stop something like that. Of all the things I caused, I was glad I had caused the tears of happiness that now leaked from his eyes.

* * *

><p>"Why didn't you tell me before?" Sora demanded.<p>

"Sora, I'm sorry, things…happened kinda fast."

"Roxas, once Ven is fully conscious you are _so_ dead. I can't believe you kept this all from me!"

Later after Roxas had run dry and calmed down enough, we went to go visit Sora in his room and tell him of my revelation. But it also meant that the secret behind Ven's stupor had to be revealed as well. This didn't sit well with Sora _at all_. He kept griping about how he felt betrayed by Roxas until I got fed up with his complaining and cut him off.

"Sora, look, we know you're upset, but stop yelling at Roxas because it's not his fault," I said severely in Roxas's defense. "He didn't tell me either, I just sort of figured it out on my own. Then he spilled everything about how he didn't want to worry either of us because of Ven's condition. Don't you realize it? That Roxas held all this in since he didn't want us to stress over something else while we were recovering? He kept it all to himself because he didn't want us to waste energy worrying when we could be getting our strength back. He was the only one not maimed or otherwise, so he was breaking his back taking care of all three of us! He's been suffering more than any of us right now. You could show some understanding for all he went through to help us."

Sora fell silent at my tirade. I started feeling bad, thinking maybe I'd gone too far. But then he smiled sheepishly.

"Yeah…you're right, Xaros. I guess I wasn't really grateful for everything he did." He then turned to face Roxas, who had been standing a little ways behind me. "Roxas…I'm sorry. I guess I got a little carried away."

"It's…it's alright."

Sora beckoned him over. "Come here."

Roxas nervously made his way over to Sora, and sat next to him on his bed. Sora slung an arm around Roxas's shoulders. "So let me see if I got all this straight. Ven is in a stupor right now because he saw _me_ almost bleed to death, so you think me seeing him will snap him awake completely?"

"Well…that was the general idea, since he'll know you're alive." Roxas shifted uncomfortably. "Do you think that maybe…?"

"Of course I'll do it. It's worth a shot, isn't it?"

"Not only that, but do you think you'll be able to stand? You didn't leave the bed all week, so your legs might be a little weak…"

Sora's lips parted as he flashed his trademark grin. "What have I got you two for, then? I don't keep you around just to fill the extra spaces in my house. Come on, take me to him. I'm not going to stand having a human vegetable as my brother."

I was confused for a moment, then I realized what Sora had meant. I smiled too. "You got it."

* * *

><p>The minute we got to the twins' door, Sora made us stop and put him down. We were reluctant, but he insisted, "If you want the best results out of this little test, then it's better if he saw me walking on my own. Let me down. You don't need to be my crutches anymore."<p>

When we consented, he staggered and his legs almost buckled beneath him, but he still wouldn't let us help him. Bracing himself against the wall, he grasped the doorknob, turned it, and pushed the door open. Then taking a deep breath, he slowly walked over to where Ven lay on the bed, eyes half-open and glazed over, staring at the ceiling without seeing it. Roxas hadn't been lying – he didn't react to the noises we made, and gave no indication that he knew we were here.

Sora knelt next to where Ven's head was, doing all in his power to avoid jostling the bed (his legs were still weak from lack of use) and put his hand on his right arm, his eyes never leaving Ven's face. He put his lips next to Ven's ear.

"Ven," he breathed. "It's Sora. I'm here, I'm still alive. Wake up."

We waited with bated breath. Would my theory actually prove correct? Would he really come to?

The three of us gasped in unison as Ven twitched and blinked several times, his eyes still glazed over. He turned his head to face us, and blinked one more time, as if to make sure we were actually there, and faced Sora, whose face was lit up in joy at seeing his brother properly conscious.

"…Sora? Is that really you?" he croaked.

"Oh, God; Ven, you're awake!" Sora caught him up in a hug. "Oh, thank God. We didn't think – I can't believe – It actually worked –"

Ven was startled awake by now thanks to Sora's brutish hug. "What are you talking about? I – I thought you were –"

Sora was too overcome with emotion to answer him, and Roxas joined in on the hug, tears brimming in his eyes again. Ven looked beyond confused, and looked over at me, the only one who hadn't joined the hug, questioningly.

I smiled at him. "You've been out for over a week. They're just glad to see that you're awake." I didn't tell him any more than that. He didn't need any nightmares.

"A week…? Why was I…" Ven shook his head as much as he could with two people clinging onto him. "Man, everything's so fuzzy…what the hell happened…"

"That's not important right now," I insisted. "Your brothers are clinging onto you because this is the first time you've been conscious after you cried yourself to a week-long coma when you saw Sora's blood. If I were in your place, I'd appreciate the gesture more."

A dozen emotions flitted across Ven's face before finally settling on being flushed bright red. "You…you know about that?"

"Believe me, it wasn't hard to figure out. I almost wish I hadn't found out the way I did."

"Promise that you won't tell anyone," he insisted. "Swear it."

I held up my hands in surrender. "Okay, I swear. I have no one to tell, anyway."

His face relaxed somewhat, then put his hands on his brothers' shoulders and said gruffly, "Guys, get off me. I can't breathe."

The two finally let him go, and Ven faced away from them for a moment before turning back to Sora.

"Sora…you're really okay?" He sounded unsure.

"This is the best I've ever felt in my life. Don't worry about me," Sora said breathlessly, obviously still excited that Ven was fully awake. "I'm just glad you're awake again."

"Ven…do you remember anything from last week? Anything at all?" Roxas asked now, cautious.

"Well…" Ven wrinkled the blanket beneath his palm. "All I remember is seeing all that blood. …Sora's blood." He shuddered. "I – I don't remember anything after that. Everything else is blank."

The room was quiet for several minutes.

"Ven…maybe you should rest for now. You went through enough stress as it is." Roxas was still clearly worrying over his brother's welfare.

"What for? I'm okay, honest."

"That's for your caretaker to decide, Ven," Sora said sternly, becoming the older brother again. "If Roxas says you need more rest, then that's what you're gonna get. No arguments."

"But –"

"Ven, come on. You're not going to win this one," I told him. "Just do as Roxas says. I'm sure you'll be perfectly fine by tomorrow."

Ven opened his mouth to make a rebuttal, but then he shut it again and gave up. "Okay, you win. I'll stay here. But there's just one thing I want right now more than anything."

"What's that?"

"I'm starving. I haven't eaten for a week, and I'm so famished I'm surprised I woke up at all. Can one of you guys bring me some food to eat in bed? Then I'll stay in bed, no questions asked. Promise."

The three of us laughed, and the atmosphere immediately lightened.

"I'll do it," Roxas volunteered. "Sora's still not feeling well enough to cook. You'll have to do with toast and cereal."

Roxas then glanced at me and winked, saying, "Sora is a much better chef than I am, but since Sora's legs aren't working for him at the moment, I'll have to take the keys to the banquet hall until his legs get stronger."

"Aw, man, I have to eat your cooking?" Ven complained. "I'd rather starve."

"Hey! If it weren't for me you wouldn't even be talking to me right now!"

"But still, your culinary skills leave something to be desired. I'd rather eat something Xaros made than eat any of your food."

"Hey, don't drag me into the middle of this," I warned. "I'm not involved. And Ven, I'm not sure whether that's a compliment or an insult."

"Could be a bit of both. You never know."

"Thanks a lot, Ven. Now go back to sleep so I don't have to hear you talk. It was so much quieter without your voice."

"Hey, you can't mean that!"

We continued to rib each other until Sora forced Roxas to go make Ven some food. Then he made me act as his crutch again so he could return to his room. When I let Sora down on his bed again, instead of releasing his hold on me, he pulled me down on the bed next to him.

"What was that for?" I asked, miffed.

"Gotta make good on a promise I made." He leaned back on his hands. "Roxas told me that you deserved to know how Ven got his hemophobia and told me to tell you because he's under obligation not to breathe a word about it to anyone. So I'm going to tell you why Ven is so afraid of blood. You wanted to know, right?" He gave me a furtive glance.

"Er, uh…yeah, I did." I was mildly shocked at the method with which he was approaching this topic. "But before you do, I have one question."

"Oh? What do you want to know?"

"I'm just wondering, but…even though you're the older brother, why hasn't he made you promise to keep this secret if he made Roxas swear secrecy?"

Sora didn't reply for several minutes, debating whether or not it'd be safe to reveal such information. Eventually he turned to me and said, "Well…he's more ashamed, than anything."

"Ashamed?" I picked out the word in surprise. "What would he be ashamed of? If it were something stupid, like not wanting to be seen in a dress or something, then I'd get it, but…why would he be ashamed of a phobia? It's not really that it's his fault he's afraid of blood…right?"

Sora sighed. "See, that's where it gets dicey. The thing is, it _is_ partially his fault, or so he believes."

"How –"

Sora held up a hand, and I closed my mouth, though my curiosity hadn't abated.

"Anyway, the reason he made Roxas promise to keep it a secret and not me is because he trusts me more to keep quiet about it. Roxas…I know he wouldn't breathe a word of it to anyone, since it's the last thing _any_ of us want to remember, but Ven isn't taking any chances with him. You understand."

"Y…yeah."

"Is that it? Any more questions?"

"No…that's all…" I said, and I thought to myself, _For now, anyway._

Sora leaned forward again and rested his arms on his thighs. He seemed reluctant to go on, and I almost wanted to tell him that I didn't want to hear such a personal story anymore.

He didn't raise his head when he spoke again. "Okay, from what I'm about to tell you, you're about to find out some things about our family. Some parts might be a little…disturbing. Our family history isn't something we like to share with other people, so I'll apologize ahead of time if I start acting possessive; it's just not something we're used to."

I nodded, apprehensive now. "Um…okay."

Only after hearing his next words did I realize that I had no idea what I'd gotten myself into.

"Ven…he killed our father."

* * *

><p><em><strong>Ooh, lots of hugging in this one! And yay, the third chapter is finished! Wow, I feel as if I dragged this one on longer than I had to, but I just had so much fun with this chapter! *shields self from Ventus fans*<strong>_

_**Anyway, I had planned on revealing some of the three brothers' background in this chapter, but it turned out that there were more things I needed to lay on the table than I thought. So, I've decided to push it back to next chapter and leave you with this totally awesome and confusing cliff hanger! :D And sorry for the short length. This was one of those fabrication chapters where I had to come up with things from scratch.**_


	5. Reflecting on the Past

**_Hey, guys; it's chapter 4! (Finally…) Here, you get some background story on two of the four, Ven and Sora to be specific, which I'm sure most of you are curious about – what with Ven fainting at the sight of blood and everything. Sora…you'll find out as you read. Let's get on with it, because I'm sure you don't want to listen to me ramble all day xD Lots and lots of backstory in this chapter! Hope it isn't too much._**

**_Oh, and a few new characters will be introduced here, if only in a recounting of events. A few of them are still around though. Where are these enigmatic new characters now? Oh, the mystery! :O_**

**_Just one last thing. I hate this chapter. So hard to write that I almost put it on hold indefinitely. I really hope that you guys appreciate this chapter; it was one of the hardest things ever to write for me! If not…oh well. Enjoy as much as you can._**

**When Xaros put out the question of how exactly Ven had developed such a massive fear of blood, Sora lays it for him on the table, since he had every right to know. Later on when Riku comes to visit his friend, a slip up on his part results in the two fighting. When Ven and Roxas reveal the reason for Sora's cruel reaction, Xaros inadvertently begins to take a glimpse into a world he didn't know he was a part of. Not to mention, Sora has some news for him that completely overturns his life.**

**Ch. 4: Reflecting on the Past**

"_All truths are not to be told."_

_-__George Herbert__, __Jacula Prudentum__ (1651)_

* * *

><p>The sentence hung in midair, shivering with tension, as if the slightest disturbance would cause it to implode.<p>

Sora interrupted me before I could get a syllable out. "Don't judge him yet, Xaros. To put it in kinder terms, Ven was the reason our father died. And he had inadvertently punished himself for it by watching him breathe his last. Ven never forgave himself for that. At one point he nearly went mad with guilt. The truth is, Ven was not always like this. He used to always lay everything out for us in the open without worrying about anything. Now he's afraid to even hint at our father, because he is terrified of how we'll react. We're partly to blame for the way he is now." A bitter tone leaked through near the end of his statement.

I still couldn't comprehend the slew of new information about his middle brother. Ven had caused his father's death, and he'd gotten punished for that without even realizing by watching him die. He had been so guilty that he'd wallowed in it. I wasn't sure how to look at him anymore.

"Roxas, I'm really sorry to say, was the spark that started the fire that consumed Ven's free will. He blamed Ven for our father being dead. Roxas wouldn't even try to understand what he'd been through, refusing to reason with him – or me for that matter. I knew Ven didn't intend it to be that way, but that's how it had happened, and he'd ultimately paid for it."

"How?" I didn't mean to say it out loud, but it came through anyway. "What happened?"

"All right, this is going to sound crazy, but hear me out. Once you get the bulk of the story, you'll believe me.

"You see, our father was the de facto leader of an organization called the Phalanx Coalition, as they called themselves. The group was like a…a supernatural police force, I guess you could call it. They kept peace in our world utilizing many different abilities, and just the show of it had been enough to stop any criminal in their tracks. Except for one…"

Here Sora broke off and ground his teeth together, hate burning in his eyes. I wondered why such an expression came about.

"Our father had a friend named Arkhaine Robur," he went on, saying the unfamiliar name through tight lips. "They were best friends; they had known each other since they were little. Arkhaine was his second-in-command of the Phalanx Coalition. The two of them gained a reputation as the Tao Duo, since they complimented each other so well, and their skills far outclassed those of the rest of the Phalanx Coalition. My brothers and I…it was our dream to be just like our father and his accomplice, to be even more legendary than they ever were. We vowed that as soon as we were of age, we would join the Phalanx officers and rank among their members."

This story sounded too outlandish to be true. Supernatural police force called the Phalanx Coalition? Sora's father being the very leader of such an organization? If it weren't for the occurrences of last week, I would have walked right out of the room calling him crazy. But I had a feeling that I should listen to everything he had to say before rendering judgment on them.

Something else bothered me though, and I was dismayed to find the source: Sora had said "our world"…like he wasn't a part of this one.

Sora tensed now, and he continued, his words coming a little slower than normal. "It was nine years ago. Our father was getting ready to leave for duty when Ven went running up to him. He wanted to go along with him that day. He wanted to watch our father at work. Our father refused to let him so much as take a step out of the house. Being a part of the Phalanx Coalition means that you're exposed to a lot of danger, and he didn't want Ven to be a part of that, as young as he was."

Nine years ago…that meant the twins had been only seven years old. I was starting to see why the trauma afterward had such a huge effect on him.

"Ven didn't give up though. He kept on asking day after day, hoping that our father would cave in. Eventually he managed to convince him that it would be safe enough if he had escorts with him. Unfortunately, the day he chose to listen to Ven was the last time we ever saw him alive. Something that wasn't exactly completely unexpected just happened to unfold that day."

"What are you talking about?"

"Arkhaine and my father were best friends, but like any friends, they tended to squabble over things that they disagreed on. At that point my father and he were in the middle of their biggest argument yet."

"What argument?" The air seemed to be getting colder.

"I already told you how they were the two de facto leaders of the coalition because their abilities far outclassed the other members. Arkhaine was…arrogant, and very ambitious. One day he proposed to my father what he thought about using their power as coalition leaders to bring our world into submission, and rule over it together. My father was appalled that he'd even consider such a horrific idea. He argued that the coalition was meant to bring justice over the world, not subdue it. But Arkhaine was stubborn. He wouldn't relent. He was so caught up in the idea of conquest that the two just stopped working together. The day that my father relented to Ven's pleas was the third day of their quarrel.

"I remember that day like it was only yesterday.

"It was cloudy, and my father didn't expect much to happen that day. That's why he allowed Ven to come along. Of course, being the twin brothers they are Roxas had to tag along too. I didn't leave because someone had to watch over the house while they were gone. So I was alone for the rest of the day without having a clue about what was going on out there." Sora breathed deeply and covered his face in his hands. "If only I'd had gone with them despite my father's orders…then none of that would've happened."

"You can't blame yourself for that…you didn't know it was going to happen. And even if you did, what could you have done? You were only ten."

If I thought that that would reassure him, I was dead wrong. Sora's eyes tightened defensively through his pale fingers.

"You don't understand." His words dropped like stone in water. Hopeless. "He…he knew that I wanted to join the coalition when I became of age, so he'd started training me early on. I knew the basics of combat…and I really hate to say this, but you do have a point. What could I have done against Arkhaine?"

"Arkhaine? I thought he was –"

"He betrayed us," Sora muttered, his tone full of loathing. "He betrayed our father. He didn't want to be suppressed by the likes of him anymore from his dream of conquest. So he decided to get rid of his only stumbling block to have his visions realized. He couldn't have picked a worse day to try, since both Ven and Roxas were with him."

The atmosphere of the room was becoming unbearably heavy under the weight of this conversation. I could barely breathe for what I was worth, let alone ask any questions. I couldn't even remember why I had brought up such a subject in the first place.

"What's even worse, he managed to brainwash the rest of the coalition into believing that conquering our world was a better option than just defending it. So it was my father against the entire organization that he'd worked so hard to create and train. The very same group of people who pledged to give their service to our world, to make sure that the inhabitants lived without fear. After what they had done, they lived in nothing _but_ fear. What he'd done…it's utterly unforgivable."

It took me a moment to find my voice and remember how to speak before I asked, "So…when do the twins come into this?"

"Later in the day, when it started to get dark and rainy, I started preparing things for their arrival. I was in the middle of setting dinner when Roxas charged in. What got me was that he looked like he'd been battered, and that he was alone. Neither my father nor Ven was in sight. I demanded to know where they were. Roxas was crying so I had a hard time getting it out of him, but I managed to get that Arkhaine had somehow been involved. I left Roxas in the house while I went to go look for them.

"I found them after hours of searching. My father was staggering; he'd become wounded. Ven was sheltered behind him, looking beyond terrified. When I took a look at who had injured my father, I realized that Roxas had been right. Arkhaine was involved, and not only that, he was the one who had attacked him. I was so angry that I charged him without thinking, but he just batted me aside like I was just an annoying fly. He hit me hard enough that I almost blacked out. But I managed to hang on, and witness the horror."

My palms were getting sweaty from the stress of the story, although I knew that Sora and Ven were both fine.

Sora continued in a whisper. "Even though I managed to stay conscious, my mind wasn't focused, so I don't remember much of it. But what I do remember, I could do well without. Arkhaine was about to deliver the death blow to our father when Ven tried to stop him. It sounds stupid, I know, but what else would you have expected in that situation?"

I horrified me to think of a seven-year-old Ven taking on a legendary coalition member. I sensed that the reason behind Ven's trauma was drawing nearer, and I grew more apprehensive with every syllable that escaped Sora's lips.

"Ven dashed up to Arkhaine and grabbed his leg, and screamed at him to leave our father alone. Arkhaine started getting irritated with him and started punching him demanding that he release his leg, but Ven ignored him. My father was horror-struck by what his former friend was doing to his son, so he begged him to let Ven go. Beat him, kill him; he didn't care – he just wanted both of us to be safe. That's what ultimately led to his death. Our father gave himself up so that Ven wouldn't die…so that neither of us would die. That's why Ven deluded himself into thinking that he was the reason that he' dead. He says that if he'd stayed quiet, our father would probably still be with us.

"The minute Arkhaine released Ven, he stabbed our father through the chest and nearly cut his heart in two. His blood showered everywhere – the ground, the walls…and us. Arkhaine must have known that my father was nearing his end, because he withdrew his weapon and left without a word. I remember how Ven screamed. It was the most horrible thing I'd ever heard. Ven was hysterical; he screamed at our father, 'You can't die. You can't die on us.' I wasn't even fully conscious of what was happening. I felt the warmth and wetness of the blood, but I couldn't comprehend what it was or where it came from until it was too late. When we looked at him, a pool of blood surrounding his frame, we both knew he wasn't going to make it.

"I could only stare at him while he was dying on the ground in front of me. I still couldn't comprehend what was unfolding before my own eyes, even after he was long dead. But I do remember his last words…he said, 'I am proud to call you my sons…take care of each other.' But Ven…the minute our father drew his last breath, Ven shook him in a vain attempt to wake him up, even though he knew he was no longer alive. He knew it. He just didn't want to believe that it was true. When he finally accepted the truth, and saw the crimson on his hands, his mind couldn't take any more."

Here he paused, and I was abruptly pulled out of my deliberations. His expression was guarded, as if he was on the brink of revealing hidden information.

I waited for him to go on, but after a full minute of heavy silence I broke it. "So…what happened after that? What about Roxas?"

"He was still home…though by the time we came back he was on the verge of leaving again. He saw us covered in blood and without our father, he demanded an explanation. When I told him what had occurred, he wouldn't believe me. He kept on denying it, and when he finally decided to accept what had happened, he caught up Ven by the collar and screamed in his face, 'It's your fault he's gone! It's all your fault!' I had to pull them apart for him to stop pummeling Ven. He kept on blaming Ven for our father dying, and it scarred Ven more than he knew until he was older. You have no idea how guilty Roxas felt when he first realized the truth. I'm sure you already noticed, but Roxas is a worrier. That is the result of what happened."

Sora's voice caught, and I was jerked back into the world of the present. I faced him, and beheld his face twisted in torment. I had been so involved in what he had been saying that I had forgotten about everything else. Seeing the way his eyes tightened as he fought off the fell influences of these memories – he looked weak…vulnerable.

He hastily wiped away the tears that had formed in his eyes. "Sorry about that," he muttered, struggling to keep his voice steady.

"No…I should be the one saying I'm sorry," I admitted, my fists tight on my thighs. "I shouldn't have made you recount everything for a mere curiosity of mine. I feel guilty now making you retell all that."

But his response wasn't at all critical. He was full of understanding. I hated it. "You would have heard it sooner or later, living with us. And I don't blame you for being curious, Xaros. Anyone would've had the same notion."

I protested, "But still…"

"It's okay." He put a hand on my shoulder and smiled warmly. "You deserved to know, after everything you did to help Ven. At least you can…understand him a little better now."

Despite my irritation, I felt a ghost of a smile tug on my lips. "Yeah…"

I could now render judgment on Ven…it was all clear to me now.

He was just a victim to his own mistakes, like anyone else in the world. Consequences exist to push you in the right direction, although it might not always be the way you plan it to be – or want it to be. Sometimes, the results can be horrifying and life-scarring, as in Ven's case. I knew that he hadn't meant to get his father killed, and he hadn't chosen to develop hemophobia. It was just life's cruel way of telling him that he did something wrong and that he should never commit another heinous act such as that. I knew that Ven had learned his lesson, and I didn't – couldn't – decide for him who he was. He had only tried to help his father, what was wrong with that?

But there was a nagging feeling in my gut. Something didn't seem right; something seemed to be missing. I knew I wasn't imagining it, but I didn't reveal my deliberations to Sora. As if he needed anything else to rip open his heart over.

All I knew was this – Arkhaine killed Sora's father to realize his dreams…but where was he now?

* * *

><p>It was the next morning and Ven was feeling well enough to walk around. The three of us were in the living room playing Go Fish because there wasn't anything better for us to do. Even working out in the backyard did little to ward off our boredom. Call us boring, but seriously, nothing has been going on. Emphasis on <em>nothing<em>.

And don't even think for a _second_ that I'm not as bored as you probably are.

"You're not serious. You have got to be kidding me!" I exclaimed in exasperated disbelief.

"No, I'm not. Hand them over, they're mine now," said Ven smugly, stretching out his hand.

I slapped down my cards in frustration. "I give up. Man, I _swear_ these cards are rigged."

"They're perfectly normal cards! And besides, this is the only set in the house."

"Yeah, right. How is it possible then that you've won every freakin' round?"

"It's not my fault you suck. You just have bad luck."

"Say that again."

"Guys, seriously; stop acting like kids!" Roxas intervened vehemently. "It's only a game!"

"Ah, screw this." I stood up and collapsed on a nearby couch. "I'm not in the mood anymore."

Ven and Roxas put down their cards and shuffled them into a neat stack. Then they flopped down on either side of me.

"Honestly, is there anything left to do?" I muttered, irked. "We've been playing this for the past four hours. My brain is so numb I can't believe I'm still talking."

Roxas cocked his head toward the couch frame and sighed. "Well, I don't know. We can't do a whole lot until Sora gets his strength back."

"It's been nearly two weeks," I reiterated for the fifth time that day. "How serious are his injuries if he's still stuck in his room?"

Ven rested his chin on his hands. "Well, it's not exactly his fault that he's stuck in bed. He still needs to get used to walking again. It's just going to take a little time, that's all. Don't sweat it so much; you'll end up as big a worrywart as Rox if you don't watch yourself."

A tic was going in Roxas's cheek. "I told you…to stop calling me that!"

Apparently Roxas didn't like having a pet name. This guy needed to loosen up a bit. I was about to say so when someone rapped on the front door and made the three of us jump. Roxas had been in the process of head-locking Ven when they were interrupted.

"Huh…I wonder who that could be…" Eager to escape the monotony of the morning (and Roxas's deadlock), Ven hastily extricated himself from Roxas's stranglehold and went to get the door.

"Hey!" We heard him exclaim in surprise. "What brings you here?"

Roxas and I joined Ven at the front door to see what he had been startled by. When we did, I felt my jaw drop in astonishment. Roxas was likewise as stunned.

"Riku?" I gasped.

"Hey again, you guys," Riku greeted us amiably. "Just thought I'd drop by and see how Sora's doing. Where is he?"

"Um, he's in his room. Is he expecting you?" I added, curious. "Did he call you or something?"

Riku smiled as if he were enjoying a private joke, and his lips twitched. "Maybe."

"Well, don't just stand out there. Sora isn't really in any condition to come out and meet you so you'll have to go see him in his room," Roxas said hurriedly.

Riku looked slightly taken aback. "Uh, sure." He stepped in and shut the door behind him with a click.

"So," he said with a questioning look. "Care to fill me in?"

"I think it's best that Sora does the filling in," Ven cut in. "We weren't really sure what was going on at the time. You should go ask him."

Riku raised an eyebrow in confusion at our evasiveness. "What's up with you and these secrets?" he asked.

"Don't ask," I groaned. "We're just as lost as you are."

Riku looked from my face to the twins, then he said, "Well, if you say so. I'll just go talk to him, then. I'll see you in a bit." With a half-hearted wave he headed into the dim hallway, leaving us staring after him.

* * *

><p>There was a sudden scuffle and a crash coming from Sora's room.<p>

"Dude, get out. Get the _hell_ out!" We made out Sora's impassioned shout.

"What the heck is wrong with you? I only mentioned it once –" We heard Riku attempt to retaliate.

"I've told you a million times before to not mention _him_ in front of me! You crossed the damn line. Get out of my house!"

"Just listen for a second –"

"No, _you_ listen to _me_. I have explained to you before _very_ clearly that I did not want to talk about him! He's a disgrace to our family, and I'm not going to waste my breath talking about that bastard! Just get the hell out of here!"

Then suddenly there was another crash coupled with a deafening _BOOM!_ that nearly shook the whole house. This is what told us that letting the situation dissolve on its own was a pretty stupid idea. The three of us jumped up and hurriedly made for the hallway, and we were met with a shocking sight. Riku was sprawled on the wooden floor, the door hanging on its hinges. There was a red welt on his right cheek.

Ven dashed up to him and helped him to his feet. While he was doing that I stole a glance at Sora. His feet were firmly planted on the ground – whatever Riku had said had given him the strength to stand up again. His torso was half-turned away from the doorway, his fists tightly clenched. His expression was one of pure revulsion. I began to wonder what precisely Riku had inadvertently blurted to make Sora react this way. It probably hadn't been good, judging from this current countenance.

"Riku," Roxas said urgently. "What happened? Why did he –"

Riku rubbed the welt on his cheek and grimaced. "I…think I slipped up a bit."

I didn't know what Riku had meant by that, but the twins understood. Roxas blanched, and Ven took his wrist and led him to the door whispering, "You better take off before he gets even more wound up."

After Riku left, we returned to our places on the couch. We thought it best to not disturb Sora at the moment.

My curiosity got the better of me. "Guys, what did Riku mean when he said he 'slipped'?"

Roxas twisted his hands, staring at the floor. Then he said, "Well, it's not something any of us likes to remember. Where we come from, family is the most important thing in our lives. Not the land. Not your friends. Not even your home. So when a member of our family betrays us, it's the worst possible thing to even happen. Worse than losing them to death."

I dropped my gaze, wondering what kind of society would possibly adhere to such customs. It seemed unheard of. I've heard of honor being placed above all else in some places, respect in others, and intelligence in a select few. But never family. I pondered for a moment, trying to figure out where exactly these three had come from. The only possibility was that they didn't come from this world at all. It must sound stupid, but it was all I could speculate after everything I'd heard since Sora had become wounded. I couldn't understand why Roxas had begun with such a reveal. But I couldn't reveal my deliberations to these two. Sora had told me the history behind Ven's trauma, but Ven didn't know that. It didn't seem like the best idea to tell. Not yet, at least.

Finally, I lifted my head and spoke again, tentatively. I didn't want to be the cause of another outburst. "So…I'm guessing that…a family member turned on you guys? That's why Sora was acting so upset?"

"Yeah, that's right," Ven confirmed. "But it's a little different in Sora's case."

"How?"

Ven straightened himself up and leaned his head back against the back frame of the couch. From that position he stated, "Sora was really close to him…you could say he was more attuned to him than our own parents. They always shared their secrets; they never kept anything from each other. Sora never thought for a second that he would turn his back on our family. Especially with the consequences involved."

"Consequences?" I repeated, confused. "Like what?"

"If you decide to leave your family, the community will look at you as an outcast from that point on. You're labeled as Shunned. It won't matter even if you try to come back and apologize. No one will ever look at you the same way ever again. Not ever."

I was aghast. "That's awful…"

"It's the reason Sora takes it so much harder than the rest of us," Roxas explained. "He felt betrayed by the only person he trusted with no reserve. Two closer people you couldn't find, and then he goes and joins the enemy behind Sora's back. Ever since then, he's hated him with every fiber of his being. People can't even hint at him without Sora going berserk on them. That's how bad it is."

I shuddered at the thought. Sora wasn't someone you wanted to get mad…today was only proof of that.

"And who is it, exactly?" I asked uneasily. "Who betrayed your family?"

Roxas and Ven glanced at each other warily, neither wanting to speak. My chest clenched in desperation. They couldn't stop talking yet. I needed to understand. I needed to understand everything.

"Come on, guys," I pleaded. "Give me the benefit of the doubt. Please tell me. I'll find out sooner or later, won't I? This is the best time to tell, when there's nothing to interrupt us."

They were apparently disconcerted by my reaction to their expressions. Roxas then raised his head to lock eyes with me, his expression grave. "It was…our older half-brother."

* * *

><p>I must be going out of my mind. This could only be a lie. I moved in with a bunch of weirdoes. There wasn't any other explanation as to why I was in my room sprawled on my bed refusing to talk to the twins, and there isn't any other.<p>

At the same time though, in the deep recesses of my brain, I knew that I was just in denial. The facts that had been laid out in front of me – and I didn't have any grounds in which to refute anything they had said. I guess it was pretty stupid of me to judge so quickly, but hey, you can't blame me for that. Under the circumstances there wasn't much else for me to believe.

These three…they had a half-brother…from which side? Their father or their mother? I had thought it was crazy when Sora told me the story behind his father's death and Ven's lifetime trauma, but hearing that Sora once had a half-brother he had revered before his betrayal set them against each other was the icing on the cake. I didn't think it could get any crazier than that. My head would explode.

Not only that, but something had been bugging me ever since yesterday: their origins. The way Sora and the twins had recounted these events, it made me think that they were foreign to this place. To this world. I couldn't come up with a different deduction after everything I'd experienced and heard.

A soft rapping on the door made me jump. I looked up in time to see Sora appear through the doorway. His gait was lopsided; apparently he had only found the energy to stand in the fit of rage that overcame him earlier.

I rushed to him to act as a support and led him to my bed. I sat next to him after letting him down carefully as to avoid aggravating his mending injury.

"Sora…what are you doing here?" I asked him, the unease coming from both his still-weak appearance and the reason behind his visit. "You didn't need to push yourself."

"I needed to talk to you," he told me, wincing as he shifted position. "It's important."

"What's so important that you had to come and see me?" I suspected that I knew what he had come for, but I didn't want to admit it.

"The twins are telling me that you ran out on them mid-conversation. I'm just wondering why you did something like that."

My stomach jolted; he had hit the mark. "Did they tell you everything they tole me?" I asked, nervous.

"Just about." He crossed his legs and stared at me in a not-so-much-but-still-somewhat-accusing way. "You three were talking about our half-brother behind my back, weren't you?"

"I'm really sorry," I apologized hastily. "I just couldn't help but wonder –"

"Xaros, really; you need to learn to apologize at the right time," he said, allowing a quiet chuckle. "It's nothing big. And like I said earlier with Ven's hemophobia, you were bound to find out sooner or later, what with you living with us. Better sooner than later, you always seem to think. Not that it's a bad thing. So stop apologizing so much; you're getting almost as jumpy as Roxas and you already know how much that gets on my nerves."

I was about to apologize again for that, but then I clamped my mouth shut before I started sounding like an idiot. Otherwise, I didn't know what to say to something like that.

"Well, anyway, you guys were discussing why I hate the mention of my half-brother so much. They told me that they'd already explained to you our culture, so I can just skip that and get to the point. They also already touched on the fact that he betrayed us by joining our enemy. They don't know it but you know from what I just said that he joined the Forsaken Faction." I nodded. "But you kept that a secret from them…smart move. It's best to get to that later. And…I'm assuming that you didn't tell them about your knowledge of Ven's hemophobia, either?" I nodded again. "Another thing you did right. Ven won't talk to you – or me for that matter – if he found out now that you know, and that I was the one that told you. Keep that under wraps until the right time."

"Well…no offense to you guys or anything…" I tacked it in to avoid conflict, "…but you guys seem really touchy about _lots_ of things. Is this something I'll ever be let in on or…?" I trailed off.

Sora frowned. It was a moment before he finally allowed, "Yeah, I guess we do seem that way, don't we?"

I didn't answer.

"Xaros, can I ask you a question?"

I was started by such an out-of-the-blue request, so I could only stammer, "Um, uh…s-sure. What is it?"

"I'm just curious…" He picked at a fingernail as he spoke. "Do you believe us?"

I blinked. "What?"

"Do we seem crazy to you? Have you been thinking this whole time that everything we've been telling you is an outlandish pack of lies to let your imagination run wild? Do you believe anything we've told you completely? Any of it?" There was an undercurrent to his tone I couldn't comprehend.

I fought off the urge to make a sarcastic remark of, "That's more than one question." This situation didn't warrant for it – and I didn't think the joke would be appreciated, in any case.

"Well…not really," I finally admitted, absent-mindedly pulling at a loose thread on the cuff of my jacket. "I don't completely believe what you guys are telling me. It just doesn't seem plausible – any of it. All this about supernatural police officers and its coup d'état and your world in danger of being conquered – it doesn't sound real. It's like you took everything from a fantasy book and changed the bare facts to make it seem original. I'm pretty sure nothing like that ever existed in this world – this rational world – and it never should. All this is so crazy. I want to believe you guys, really I do. But at the same time I don't. It just sounds way too impossible."

"So that's what you think." There wasn't any accusation in his tone. It was just a statement.

"Yeah…that's why I ran out on Ven and Roxas," I confessed. "I didn't want to believe what they told me. But like I told you, I wanted to, so badly it almost hurt. And…" I hesitated, wondering if I was going too far, then plowed on, "…this might sound crazy, but somehow…I feel like what you're saying is real. Like my heart is saying something completely different from my mind."

He was silent for a moment. Then, "I know how you feel. Feeling like you know, but not really knowing if you know or not. It's annoying. Everyone lives with that at some point, don't they? It's no different with you." He sighed. "Well, let me tell you this – all this we've been telling you, and everything you'd been seeing since last week – you know it's real. You know we're not lying. It's just hard to accept, isn't it? I can see it in your eyes."

He'd found the chink in my armor. He was right. Only now did I realize – after Sora came to clear things up – that I had been suppressing the desire to believe, if only subconsciously, everything that had been told to me. Now that it had a chance to sink in, it felt more real. And I couldn't deny that I was frightened. But I did feel accepting. If it was real, then you can't really do anything to make it imaginary; if it's real, it's there, and no matter what you do you can't make it go away.

"…Yeah," I said finally, breathing deeply. "You're right. I did believe you."

Sora looked at me in what looked like sympathy. I didn't know how to feel about that; my feelings were a little jumbled-up at the moment.

"Xaros," he began, "I think you should be let in on the truth. We're more than you think we are."

Well, I figured as much. But I didn't have the wherewithal or desire say it out loud. That would only get me in trouble.

"Actually, first things first," he amended. "Let's start with the mark on your left hand."

I was startled when he mentioned by birthmark. I'd never shown any of them, because I just assumed that they would be asking me nagging questions about it just like everyone else. So I didn't have the faintest idea as to how he had found out about it…unless he had known beforehand.

Reluctant, but still bewildered, I slowly removed my left glove. The divided flames were livid on my pale skin as the sun's waning rays cast a faint light upon it.

"The caelesti," he said, pointing it out. "The sign of the Liberator."

"Uh…the sign of what now?"

"The Liberator," Sora repeated patiently. "It's a special birthmark that appears on the skin of the person meant to accomplish a great task every ten generations. No matter who it is, their life isn't a leisure one. They solely fight tooth and nail for their purpose in life – to protect those who can't defend themselves from chaos. I'm sure this is coming as a huge shock to you, but that's who you are. Why do you think you were left in the orphanage, where no one wanted you? How do you suppose that you were set apart from everyone else? It's no coincidence, and not just bad luck, either. It's who you were born as. If you're born with this mark, then you're separated from everyone and everything else but your duty as a Liberator. It is intended to make you focus only on the task at hand for you."

I couldn't help but notice that Sora sounded a little…uncertain. Like he wasn't really sure about all this himself. Maybe for once I wasn't alone here.

I tried to take in what he'd just told me with little success. Me? A hero of the world? Me, the outcast that no one had wanted, that no one cared about? It just didn't seem possible.

"There's something strange about your caelesti, though," Sora suddenly mused. I girded myself for the worst. "It's shaped differently from what we have in our records of past Liberators. Theirs looked more similar to the Stars of David rather than a flame split in two."

As if I wasn't strange enough already. As if everything _else_ wasn't crazy enough. "So what are you saying? That I'm not a – a Liberator?" The notion still seemed utterly ridiculous. "Because this mark is different from all the others? What am I, a freak among freaks? It sure sounds that way."

"No, that's not it. And you're not a freak. You're just…different from them."

"What a distinction."

"Look, I know it's hard to believe, but it's the truth. How many people do you know that have birthmarks like this?"

He had a point.

"Okay, so let's go along with the fact that I'm this Liberator. What does that have to do with me over my own life?"

"Everything." He shrugged helplessly. "I'm really sorry to tell you, but a normal life is out of the question for you. It's just not possible."

Well, great. I'm sitting here, discovering that the truth of the matter is that I'm a special hero that comes every thousand years or so and I find out that I can't lead a normal life no matter how hard I try to, and me being in the orphanage with no friends had been just the beginning of my needlessly, ridiculously difficult life without me even knowing about it in the last ten minutes. Wow. Could it get any worse? Everything in me wanted to think that this was a blatant lie, but by now I knew better than to think like that. I didn't want to be another victim of the wrath of someone like Sora.

"Oh, and one more thing," Sora continued, and I groaned inwardly. How much more was there? "I'm sure all this is difficult for you to understand, so let me tell you one thing. Actually two things."

I waited.

"All right, the first thing is, I know this is all confusing for you, and tomorrow it will be much easier to understand when truth is staring you in the face. The second thing is, you're not alone in this, Xaros. Something happened that is unprecedented in our history. Two Liberators were born in this generation, even though there's usually just one. You're one of them. The other has the normal caelesti, the typical star of David."

I was deeply rattled. I mean, I discover that I'm one of those tragic heroes who sacrifice everything for people that don't even know I exist, and now there's another one when there isn't supposed to be…well, at least I wouldn't have to handle the burden on my own. Someone else had to share the pain along with me. And I had no idea what Sora was saying about the "truth staring me in the face" but I guessed that I'd find out tomorrow.

"So…who is it?" I asked when Sora wasn't forthcoming.

He gave me a sideways glance, regarded me for a minute, then an amused smile played on his lips. Then he replied dismissively, "Try to guess."

"That's not fair. I don't know a whole lot of people."

"Then, I'll give you a hint. You're looking at him."

I immediately regretted thinking the whole "sharing-the-burden" thing when I realized what he meant.

"You-you're not –"

Probably expecting my disbelief, he then proceeded to remove his right glove. When I laid eyes on it, I couldn't deny what I had presumed. There was a Star of David on the back of his hand, the now-orange shafts of light throwing the mark into relief, appearing as sharp and clear as if it had been tattooed,

Sora was the second Liberator.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Like I said in the beginning, this chapter isn't one of my favorites. I didn't realize how much I was leaving out. Hopefully this chapter didn't seem crammed from all the ridiculous backstories that I had to come up with on the fly -.-<strong>_

_**If you are reading this right now, then I commend you for having the great power of focus. Sometimes even I can't even read through this all the way.**_

_**Thanks again. Hopefully next chapter will be much better! There will be actual plot advancement (I think)! Oh, the joy!**_


	6. More Than One Truth

_**I sincerely hope that this chapter is better than the last one…Oh, Lord x(**_

_**Anyway, here the gang of four are now bringing Xaros into the know…which is probably the last place he wants to be right now. I know I wouldn't want to be there if I were him. But anyway…**_

_**Finally, actual plot advancement and foreshadowing! :D He finds out that everything that has been told to him is the truth! And other crazy stuff happens! Egads! Ooh, I can only imagine how he's feeling about that. Because he's imaginary, and I'm not an abandoned amnesiac orphan so I would have no idea how he feels… Yeah I'll shut up now and let you get on with reading the rest.**_

_**(Warning you now: this is probably the longest chapter I've written. You've been warned.)**_

**Sora comes clean and tells Xaros the whole reason behind all the strange behaviors and happenings. Soon deciding that words weren't enough to persuade Xaros, Sora decides to take the old "seeing is believing" route, and shows Xaros things that he can only accept as true or otherwise come off as unrelentingly stubborn. Afterward, Sora, Xaros, and the twins decide to go to out for dinner to let loose the stress of the day, but unfortunately fate wouldn't relent, and once again Xaros bears witness to the truth of his invisible reality.**

**Ch. 5: More Than One Truth**

"_Words are but Wind; but seeing is believing."_

_-Thomas Fuller, __Gnomologia__ (1732)_

* * *

><p>"It's – it's <em>you<em>?" I gasped. No way…

"Yep." Sora slipped his glove back on, which reminded me to do the same thing. I'd been so mind-blown that I had forgotten that I had taken it off in the first place. "Life isn't going to be kind to us, Xaros. Not by a long shot." He chuckled ruefully.

Oh no, oh no, oh _hell_ no. Why did it have to be him?

"Do…do your brothers know?" I asked cautiously.

"Oh, they know, all right," Sora confirmed. "It's you that they have no clue about."

"What?"

"They don't know that you're the second Liberator."

Something clicked in my brain when his words hit my ears. "You didn't tell them that there was a second?"

"No, they definitely know that there's another one. They just don't know that it's you."

"Why not? Did you choose not to tell them that it's me? I mean, you told _me_ it was me." Right now I'm just gonna act like I believe this is all real just for Sora's sake. To be honest with you, I _still_ wasn't completely sure if they were telling the truth or not. Look, I might have said that I believed what they had told me, but come on. Would you believe it off the bat if someone told you that out of the blue?

"It's not that. Well, actually," he conceded, "it's partly that. They're new to the Coalition; only been in for several months now. I decided not to tell them that I knew it was you from the start until the time was right and you realized who you are."

"And you knew who I was from the start?" I asked, my irritation rising steadily. "How did you know that when you've only known me for a few months? It makes no sense at all. Tell me the truth." It was true. What Sora was telling me at this moment only made it more mysterious as to why and how he knew so much about me, someone he had known only for a short time.

For a split second I thought I saw anxiety in his deep blue eyes. Then he deigned to say, "That's…a topic for another time."

This day seemed to drag on forever. I chanced a glance outside the window. It was only early afternoon. When could I escape this torrent of supposed truths into the comforts of my dreams?

*part line*

Oh, remember what I said about me wishing I could go back to the comforts of my dreams? I lied.

My dreams were anything _but_ comfort. It seemed more like a nightmare than anything. Up until now my dreams had been nothing special. I'm not entirely sure if it's just coincidence or not, but my dreams started getting strange the night after Sora had told me half of the truth. I didn't realize it then, but tonight was only the start of it.

I was at a strange place. I was on a sheer cliff face, standing at the entrance of a huge black mausoleum-like building. I could tell that a wind was blowing pretty hard, even though I couldn't feel it.

Suddenly I heard scraping of rocks, and I turned to see the source of the noise. To my complete surprise, I saw that it was me. I watched as my dream-self stepped up past me to the entrance of the enormous structure. I would've gasped in shock but my voice wouldn't work in my dream.

I looked completely different – I was in some sort of battle gear that I couldn't adequately describe to you if I wanted to, but here's what I can tell you: I was wearing a black and blue leather jacket with the collars up, and the front of the jacket was open and I could see a red undershirt. My fingerless gloves were no longer just black, but green and gold at the trimming of the glove. It also looked a little bulkier, like it was also made of leather – I could see metal greaves on the back of the gloves, scratched and worn. I was wearing black shorts as opposed to my usual jeans, and a blue belt was around my waist. I was also wearing black platform boots, and I had to admit they didn't suit me very much. It only came up just above the ankles and had Velcro straps running down it. There was a ring on my left middle finger, encrusted with a gem that bore the same symbol as the mark on my hand – the caelesti, Sora had called it.

But what really caught me was that I looked like I'd been beat up multiple times. My shorts were tattered with unsightly rips, my gloves looked like they'd been charred in a flamethrower, and my jacket and shirt were also torn. These rips revealed underneath them cuts, scrapes, burns, bruises, and any other minor injuries that you can possibly think of. It was weird seeing myself like this – but this was a weird dream to begin with. My eyes were also different – there was a frenzied light in the fell golden orbs that indicated that this probably wasn't the first time I'd been through whatever I'd just endured.

I knew one thing – I didn't ever remember looking like this or ever being here.

I continued to watch myself climb the steps to the foreboding structure, then halt halfway up. I could see why my dream-self had paused in his journey to the entrance – a person was obstructing his – my – path. He was wearing that all-too-familiar black hooded coat with the belt and shoulder plate with the scary symbol. Great. Now these freaks were appearing in my dreams, too.

The cloaked guy was the first to speak, and his voice was clear with a hint of a threat. "Well, if it isn't the renegade Xaros Skyloft. I must commend you for getting this far despite being unarmed. It seems that you're not labeled Fataliaque for nothing. Such a shame that your life must end here. You were a fool to return here, Skyloft. Nothing but death awaits you in the Spekteret Fortress."

My dream-self completely disregarded his threats and stated his business, which the real me would probably never be able to do. "I never said that I was coming back to stay here, Silfur. I've come back to take what's rightfully mine. Get out of the way."

"Spare me." The dude named Silfur stabbed a finger in my dream-self's direction. "It's the swords you came for, isn't it? Division's Blight? Terribly sorry to say, but just handing them over to you doesn't seem to fall within our interests."

"I don't give a rotting rat's ass about your interests. I'm taking the swords for my own, and you're not gonna stop me. I don't want to resort to violence, but I will if you won't stand aside." My dream-self's eyes seemed to flicker gold briefly, white and all, as he stepped closer. That scared me more than the guy obstructing my dream-self's path. "I'm warning you, I won't be holding back. Last chance."

Silfur threw his head back and chortled mirthlessly, "You certainly talk big for a boy with no weapon to defend himself with. You're all bark and no bite! You –"

I didn't get to hear what else I was, because just then an earthshattering explosion interrupted Mr. High and Mighty. I was shocked to find that the gates of the fortified fortress had been turned into rubble and watched as it burst into flame. The heat from the thick sheet of orange blaze made the air ripple.

Silfur continued to stand there in numb shock as the supporting pillars of the fortress crumbled from the heat of the inferno. He looked more horror-struck than I probably did, which was saying something. But that was the furthest thing from my mind right now as I stared at my dream-self.

His face betrayed no emotion. It was as if he'd done nothing more spectacular than flipping a coin as he advanced toward Silfur, who was still petrified at the show of ferocity that I had displayed. He (there was no way that this heartless monster could be considered me) casually brushed past him, quenching the flame in his path with a lazy flick of the hand, and stepped into the gloom of the mausoleum, leaving the rest of the ruins to burn.

On the threshold of the light of the outside and the darkness of the building, he paused briefly. He halfway turned his body to chance a glance back at Silfur. By this time Silfur had already gathered his wits and his face was contorted in livid fury.

"How dare you!" he screamed at his unfeeling expression. "You'll pay for what you've done to the Master's fort! Rest assured that he will personally see to your end! No one can stand up to him! You'll never get the swords; you'll be rotting before you get even close! None can –"

I was seriously hoping that the Silfur dude would shut up right about now if he knew what was good for him. This idiot was going to get himself murdered. I didn't care if he was the enemy – my dream-self was just as cruel as I'd seen them, maybe even more. How could I have ever been like that? It made no sense to me.

All through this rant his expression remained blank. I watched myself turn away from the raving madman and take a couple more steps inside. Then I heard the most frightening words that had ever left his lips.

"Burn in hell."

There was a piercing, agonizing scream that issued from the mouth of the cloaked man as he exploded into flames. He writhed and screamed in agony on the ground for what seemed like an eternity. My dream-self was swallowed by the blackness of the interior of the fortress as he left the cloaked figure to burn into ashes. Everything went black.

With a strangled cry I snapped awake and jerked up into a sitting position. It was light in the room, the dim light of the morning illuminating the furniture.

_Only a dream_, I told myself to calm down. _It was just a dream…right?_

I wasn't completely sure. It had felt too real. The explosions. The flames. The execution. The cold fire in my eyes in the dream. There was no way that I could've imagined anything like that. My gut wrenched when I came to terms with what I had seen.

I had committed all those atrocious acts…but I didn't ever remember doing them. My soul was stained with blood without me even knowing. Something wasn't right here. What were they keeping from me?

* * *

><p>"Pinch me," I said.<p>

"Xaros, if I pinch you any more you're gonna get a hemorrhage," Roxas protested.

"No, I won't. This is a dream. I know it is. I'm going crazy. I'm seeing something that isn't there. This isn't real. Pinch me and wake me up!"

Do you really want to know why I'm freaked out of my mind? Well, it's rather simple.

I was staring up at a dragon.

I can almost hear your thoughts screeching to a halt right about now after I said those words. "A _dragon_? What kind of a crazy story is this?" "Supernatural bad guys, magical weapons, and now a dragon? How far-fetched can this get?" "Did you just come out of the loony bin?"

These are all valid questions, but I defy you to come up with a story that wasn't so reasonable without all these elements in it. To be fair, though, I initially had the same reaction you guys are probably having right now. Call it cliché if you will, but it's the truth. And besides, it's only the beginning of the story. It's gonna get (or seem) way more original later on, I promise.

Anyway, I was in a huge (And I mean huge. It had multiple floors.) underground basement that was somehow custom-built, craning my neck to stare upward at a gargantuan black dragon. It was easily twenty feet long, maybe more, its tail making a third of that length. Chrome spikes ran down starting from the base of its skull, getting progressively smaller as it reached the ends of its tail. It had a narrow, triangular head that was like a cross between a crocodile and a monitor lizard, with horns at the top of its head that curved outward at the middle then curved up again, like a stereotypical lightning bolt, except that it was as black as the rest of its body, attached to a long sinuous neck. I couldn't see its teeth, but I didn't need a visual to know that it was as fearsome as the rest of the dragon. The scales on this massive beast were lustrous, as if polished, and they appeared to be very hard. Its underbelly was a more subdued ash-like color, but it didn't look any less well-defended. But I thought I could make out two cut wounds that had scarred on his chest, right above where his heart probably was. Its eyes were serpent-like and bright green with vertical pupils. It had huge webbed wings, like you see on bats, easily thirty feet in span. The skin flaps between each fold were a translucent gray. I couldn't believe what I was seeing – or hearing, for that matter.

"For the last time, _he's yours_," Ven stressed, exasperated at my stubbornness. "He's yours. His name is Umbraen. He's been waiting for you for a long time. Stop gawking at him and greet him!"

I continued to stand there, staring open-mouthed at the dragon like an idiot.

"Dude, he's standing right there. What else can I do to make you believe me?"

"Nothing," I finally replied, my eyes still locked on the dragon. "Absolutely nothing."

The dragon snorted in what I could've sworn was amusement.

"He's impossible," I heard him mutter to Roxas. "Sora was right; it won't work on him. You have a go."

Then I felt a hand grasp my shoulder in a vice-grip, and only then did I tear my eyes away to face the person who had touched my shoulder, which turned out to be Roxas.

"I'm guessing that you're having a hard time believing us even with the truth staring you in the face?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ven muttered behind my back, "Hell, even _I_ don't believe it."

Roxas gave his twin brother a warning look and said shortly, "Shut up."

I didn't see the significance of that exchange until much later. At the time I just thought it was another one of those "sibling quarrels" and didn't really think much of it. "Well, to be honest with you, I'm still trying to believe what Sora told me yesterday…my head's so full I'm surprised it didn't explode from sheer pressure."

Oh, so you thought that Sora had stopped talking after the whole "we-both-are-Liberators" bit? That's where you are completely wrong. That was only when I _wished_ that he would stop talking, not when he _actually_ did stop talking. He actually talked well into the night and probably would have talked for the rest of the night if it weren't for Roxas's nagging (which for the first time I was grateful for).

Sora told me pretty much everything that I'd already heard from him, but it made more sense and was more believable after hearing it the second time. Roxas and Ven intruded somewhere in the middle, but Sora didn't stop talking. In fact, his storytelling had become more energetic and animated with them around and I had to stop him every few minutes to make sense of what he was saying.

Standing in front of a living, breathing dragon didn't simplify matters, either.

"Quite honestly, we're surprised you're accepting this at all, subconscious or no," Roxas admitted. "But, I think I know a way to convince you that this is all true and that this dragon is _yours_."

"How? I'd seriously love to know."

"Okay, here's what I'm going to have you do. Look at him again and think 'hello'."

"You're crazy."

"Oh, just do it already. You and your skepticism are really starting to wear on me."

I seriously thought that everything going on was all a ruse, somehow, but I didn't think anyone could replicate a real twenty-foot long dragon. So I just gave up and did as Roxas asked. But I couldn't do it without feeling like a total moron.

_Uh…hello there_, I thought. _Can you hear me?_

To my complete shock, I heard an answer – in the form of a rich, thrumming, and definitely male voice, _I see you at long last, Xaros. I hope that you've been doing well._ He lowered his head until it was level with mine, and the voice filled my head again. _Nothing has gone wrong, I trust?_

_Uh…_ I couldn't tear my eyes away from the snout of the dragon, but I could hear the presumptuous sniggers coming from the twins. _Well…not exactly sure what to say to that, actually…_

_What troubles you?_ His emerald eyes were suddenly vigilant, as if watching for danger. _You seem distressed. Is everything all right?_

_Um, okay…here's the skinny_, I sighed. _Everything that has happened to me – all of, well, this_ – I made a vague gesture at everything that had been going on –_ it doesn't make any sense to me at all. It doesn't seem…real. Sometimes I think I'm going crazy, because none of this is supposed to happen in real life… _I stopped. I didn't know what to think anymore.

I could feel confusion coming from him. It must have something to do with the fact that I was speaking to him like this. The confusion wasn't directed at me, but at what I'd said. I could sense a longing, too – it was faint, but it was there.

_Reality can be a cruel dream. _He blinked once. _However, it is what you believe in that is real. As such, reality shifts for any one being._

_So it's like…I can choose not to believe any of this, and this will never be my reality?_

_Something to that degree, yes. _

_I see… _I pondered for a second. _Well, this is as real as it gets, doesn't it? You and me speaking like this, through our minds. So…none of this is a lie. That's what I believe._

Satisfaction that wasn't mine coursed through me. _If that is what you choose._

_Yeah. I do. Or else you wouldn't be real._

_I'm honored._

I raised my hand tentatively; then I paused. _Do you mind if I…_

_No need to ask permission, my friend. _He touched the tip of his snout to my hand. His scales were smooth, rock hard, and much warmer than I'd expected. There was a deep humming resonating from his throat; it sounded like contentment. Without meaning to, I smiled.

I wasn't sure how long we stayed like that, but after some timeless minutes passed Umbraen lifted away his snout and swiveled his head around. I turned to face the same direction and saw that the twins had approached us.

"So," Ven said, amusement clearly apparent in his tone, "do you believe us now?"

"Yeah." I nodded fervently. "Yeah, I believe you."

"Man, Sora wasn't kidding," Roxas remarked, running his fingers through his hair. "Ven's ability doesn't work on you even a smidge."

I stared. "What?"

"Oh, right – I guess we never got to that last night, did we? Because of _his_ constant whining." Ven rolled his eyes at his brother. "But I'm sure that since you've seen Umbraen for yourself, you'll believe me when I tell you."

"Tell me what? Just get to the point."

"I'm a Veritable. Or in other words," Ven interjected before I could say anything, "I'm able to make anyone believe that whatever I say is the truth. If I told a random stranger that the sun is a giant glowing baseball, they'll believe me without question. It lasts about as long as I want it to, and then they'll completely forget what I've told them. It's pretty fun to mess with." He smiled wistfully.

"Oh, really?" These guys had unnatural abilities, too. Was the craziness ever going to come to an end?

"Well, not _anyone_, exactly," Roxas revised. "Most people, yes, but not everyone."

"Does it work on you and Sora?" I asked, already knowing the answer.

"As much as Ven _wants_ it to," Roxas emphasized, leaning toward Ven, who scowled like a kid and turned away, "no, it doesn't. Not anymore, anyway. Once we realized what was going on and what Ven's abilities were, we made arrangements so that it doesn't work on us anymore. There are a few exceptions though. You, for one. Or as Sora says, anyway." He suddenly looked thoughtful, and crossed his arms. "I wonder how he knows so much about you when he's only seen you for a few months."

"You're not alone there." I did wonder at how Sora was so knowledgeable about my whole aspect – even parts that I didn't even realize were there. It was like he was reading deep into my heart without me being conscious of it. Or, a more believable assumption was that maybe he knew me from before, though as I considered it I had to admit that was pretty far-fetched, too.

Roxas unfolded his arms. "Well, in any case, we thought that we could make it so that it would be easier for you to believe us with Ven's Verity, but Sora said that there wouldn't be any point since it wouldn't work. We decided to try it anyway, just to confirm what he told us. He was dead-on, apparently."

"But still," Ven cut in with a breath of relief, "you were still a toughie to convince. You put the 'skeptic' into 'skepticism'."

"Compliment or insult?"

"Eh, maybe a bit of both."

"Thanks a bunch."

"Don't mention it."

In the middle of this exchange Umbraen breathed out a warm gust of charred air that blew back our hair and growled amusedly. The three of us laughed out loud as his huge bat-like wings buffeted the stuffy air.

"Oh, guys, I've been meaning to ask," I said when our laughter subsided.

"What about?" Roxas asked.

"Okay, well, you've finally convinced me that Umbraen is really real, so I want to ask…is he the only one?"

"Only one?" Ven prompted.

"I mean, is he the only…_dragon_ here?" Despite me finally believing that Umbraen was real, it was still difficult to say out loud. "Do you guys have one, too?"

"Oh, no way," Ven answered quickly as he shook his head a tad harder than he needed to. "Not us. We prefer to keep our feet on the ground. Trying to tame one is completely out of our league. Only three people have managed to do it in the past decade. And as you can probably see" – he gestured at Umbraen, who was preening his left wing – "you're one of them."

"I'm one of three people? To tame a dragon? In the past _decade_?" Too much. It was too much. I couldn't take any more without hyperventilating. My knees were getting wobbly and I was getting light-headed, something that the twins noticed.

"Hey, are you okay?" Roxas asked in a concerned tone, grabbing my shoulder again to keep me from falling. "You look like you're about to pass out."

"Won't be surprised if he does," I heard Ven mutter through my pallor.

"Ven, be a little considerate!" Roxas snapped. "I'm pretty sure you'll react the same way if you were in his shoes."

"All right, I'm sorry. Sheesh."

"I…I'm okay," I managed to say, but apparently that wasn't convincing enough for Roxas, since he held on to me all the tighter.

"I'm fine, really," I insisted and brushed off Roxas's hand with a little effort. "I just….got overwhelmed. It won't happen again. I – I can take it."

Roxas still looked unsure, but he made no move to grab me again, for which I was grateful. These three had unnatural physical strength, and they probably didn't even realize how painful it was for me whenever they held my hand or grabbed my shoulder.

"So, where were we before you almost passed out on –" Ven faltered when a death glare came his way from Roxas's narrowed eyes, and picked up with an amendment. " –er, before you panicked?"

"Something about me being one of three people to tame a dragon in the last ten years. Speaking of which…who're the other two?" I asked out of sheer curiosity. I also had no idea what it meant to 'tame a dragon', exactly, and all I could fathom was that it wasn't the easiest thing to do, judging from Ven's reaction. But as of now there was a whole bunch of things out of my reach, so I decided to touch up on it later. This matter was much more pressing for me, in the short run.

"There's one of them now," Ven said, cocking his head behind him while grinning.

The elevator door hissed open and Sora emerged from it, still limping slightly, but overall he seemed better than yesterday. At least he was walking on his own without too much difficulty.

"Sora!" Roxas rushed forward and started fussing over him like a miniature mother hen. "What are you doing, you shouldn't be moving around yet! You're not feeling dizzy or anything, right? Do your knees still wobble? I –"

Sora – with some difficulty – managed to wave him down. "I'm fine, Roxas; I'm not about to keel over. You know worrying too much is a health hazard in itself, right? I only came down here to see what you three were up to." He then looked from me to Umbraen, stared at him for a minute or two, and gave a low whistle as he turned to the three of us again. "Aren't you moving along a bit quick. I was going to save Umbraen for last, but I guess that's all out the window after today. I'm surprised Xaros didn't pass out."

"Well, he came close," Ven said, and when this triggered an alarmed look from Sora, he quickly clarified, "Xaros managed to stay conscious, so it's all good. He even got to talking with Umbraen. We were pretty floored at how well it went, to be honest. Umbraen looked happier than I'd seen him in months."

"Of course he did. He got to see his Tamer after all this time; wouldn't you feel the same way if you were in his place?"

"Well, I'm already having enough trouble trying to imagine what it's like in Xaros's shoes. I think I'll pass on this one."

Sora rolled his eyes.

All of a sudden, things began to click into place in my brain.

"Wait a minute…" I mumbled, and this elicited a curious look from Sora, though I barely noticed. "Is it really…?"

Sora raised an eyebrow in confusion, and then faced Ven, asking, "What's he going on about?"

"Well, I kinda told him that you two were of the three people that managed to tame a dragon in the last ten years. Though we didn't say it was you explicitly."

Understanding rearranged Sora's features, and he exclaimed, "Oh, that explains it! Looks like you got that far, so I guess there's really no point beating about the bush. Has Xaros seen Akuaz yet?"

Puzzled, I asked, "Akuaz?" the same time Roxas answered, "No, you got here before we got to introduce her."

"Perfect!" Sora proclaimed. "Then I can take over from here, you two. You've done enough. You guys can go up now and take a break."

Roxas protested, "But, Sora –"

"No buts. I'll be fine. I'm not alone, and it's not like I'm going to keel over and die if I trip over a wire or something. And besides, you guys have work to do." Sora glanced at Roxas pointedly, and Roxas's expression was one of defeat. Still, he was about to say something, but Ven beat him to the punch.

"Roxas, there's really no point in arguing, all right? Sora and Xaros can take care of themselves. And seeing Sora down here should be proof enough that he's on the mend. Just let loose a little. It's not good for you, not to mention it kind of annoys us." He sighed. "And of course, you don't wanna tick him off. Just saying."

Roxas didn't have an argument for that.

"Okay, fine," Roxas said reluctantly. "At least you're not alone. But promise that you will call us if anything happens," he added, looking at Sora again.

"All right, all right, I promise," Sora said, somewhat impatiently. I guess he must've seen a lot of this from him, which got me concerned as well. How many dangerous situations did they get themselves into if they saw it so much that it irritated them? But I kept my mouth shut.

"Come on," Ven urged his twin, and he had to practically drag him to the elevator.

When the two were gone, Sora breathed a sigh; of weariness or relief, I couldn't tell.

"Okay," Sora said, turning to me. "To business, then. You want to see Akuaz?"

"Well, uh, sure." It seemed the whole reason Sora had shooed away his brothers in the first place. "But who exactly _is_ Akuaz?"

Sora grinned. "She's my dragon."

"She? Whoa, wait just a minute. You're one of the – the Tamers, or whatever they were?"

"You mean you didn't figure that out?"

"I did. I just wasn't sure."

Sora laughed when I said this. I didn't know what was so funny. "Come on," he urged. "I'll take you to see her."

* * *

><p>I got a shock when I first laid eyes on Akuaz. I was so taken aback that I could only stare, and I had no idea what to say at first.<p>

"Xaros, I know you have something to say. Spit it out," Sora insisted.

I raised my hands in confession. "Okay, I'm sorry. I just didn't expect Akuaz to be so…" I faltered, not able to come up with a good word, and I let my hands fall to my sides as articulacy failed me.

"Small?" Sora finished for me. "Yeah, I know. I tried to get her to be bigger since you were coming to see her for the first time, but she's stubborn as always. Her will is something fierce. And I mean that more literally than you can imagine."

"I believe you."

Lesson of the day number one: dragons are real. Lesson number two: they can change their size…according to Sora, anyway. Lesson number three: some of them have bad attitudes.

Akuaz was raven-sized, and if anything a scaled-down version of Umbraen – save for her more slender build, golden-bronze scales that gleamed like polished brass, and deep indigo eyes that were looking over me with what I imagined to be a critical light. Her spikes were a light mahogany color in contrast to her scales, and her wing webs were so light I took them to be a milky white, though I could be wrong. Her wings were folded up against her back so it was hard to tell. There was what appeared to be a tiny scar on her left foreleg. In short, she looked just as fierce as Umbraen had been to me, if not more.

Akuaz stared at me for a few more moments before she unfurled her wings, leapt off the dais she had been standing on, and deftly flapped them several times before landing gracefully on Sora's left shoulder. In those few seconds I deduced that I was right; her wings were milky white, but not translucent, like Umbraen's had been.

"Ouch. Easy there, Aku. That one hurt a little bit," Sora winced.

She just snorted and proceeded to lick her right foreleg.

"Um, Sora?" I asked as Sora sighed after Akuaz gave no reaction.

"Yeah? What's up?" He poked Akuaz so that her wing wouldn't be brushing against his cheek, which made Akuaz growl indignantly. I stifled a laugh.

"How big is she when she's, you know, full-size?"

"Nearly as big as Umbraen is now, though I can say she is just a tad smaller. An inch or two, at best. She doesn't like being full-size when she doesn't need to be. So she's usually like this."

"So Umbraen likes being full-size, then?"

"Yep. He tells me he feels safer that way."

"How –"

_Umbraen is nothing but a worrywart_, a new voice sounded in my head – the tone was kind of put off and annoyed, and definitely female – and I nearly fell backward in shock. _I keep telling him that there isn't anything here that can threaten us, but that fool of a lizard just won't heed anything I say, the stubborn rock._ I faced Akuaz, who was now staring at me intently, with my mouth hung open.

_You…you can talk to me?_ I asked idiotically.

She rolled her tiny jewel-like eyes in what looked like impatience and snorted, this time a tiny puff of smoke emitting from her nostrils. _You act as if you've never talked to another dragon before._

_Um…I haven't_, I confessed.

_Hmph. _She swiveled her tiny head to look Sora in his left eye. _You would do well educating this boy about how all this works, Sora. Then I wouldn't have to deal with incompetence like this one._

Wow. I just got insulted by a dragon. Pint-sized, no less.

Lesson number four: some of these dragons have serious attitude issues.

Then I was flummoxed even further when I heard Sora's voice ring in my mind, _Aw, c'mon, Aku, cut me a little slack. I'm still recovering from severe blood loss, so don't blame me if I forgot to teach him a few things in the way of the Tamers, all right? I'll enlighten him to your utmost satisfaction today, so don't worry about anything._

_Fine, then. If you go back on your word I'll rake your face open and you'll have to deal with more than blood loss._

_Okay, I won't forget that_, Sora sighed, his expression one of weariness and trepidation. Apparently this wasn't the first time he'd been threatened.

_I'm holding you to it_, was her reply, and she glided back onto the dais, curling up into a tiny ball with her back to us. I was miffed. She didn't need to be so sore about this whole thing because I looked like a complete moron to her.

I looked to Sora questioningly, seeking an explanation as to what had just transpired. He gave me an apologetic look. "Sorry about that," he said. "She can be a bit rude, she can't help herself. As to how she spoke to you, dragons that have been tamed can speak to each other, as well as other Tamers."

"I've been hearing that term over and over today," I observed. "What _is_ a Tamer, exactly?"

"It's a person who manages to make peace with a wild dragon," he explained further, "and as you probably noticed, the Tamers can hear each other's thoughts too. Pretty useful, but risky at the same time. You never know who's listening."

"Like enemy Tamers?"

He nodded in confirmation. "But for us, it's not too much of a problem. We're the only Tamers in this generation. No enemy Tamers this time around. Trying to befriend a dragon isn't something you undertake lightly.

"I see…I've got a few more questions for you, if you don't mind."

"Shoot."

"Well, first of all, how hard is it exactly to tame a dragon? From what I heard from the twins, I can tell that it's probably not the easiest thing to do, right? Since we were only two of three to do it in the past decade." I still couldn't wrap that around my head just yet. I still wondered who the third was, but it must not have been an enemy, since Sora didn't seem to be too concerned.

"You're right; no it's not," Sora agreed. "It's much harder than you can imagine. It's difficult enough that people call you crazy for even thinking about doing something so hazardous. Dragons prize their freedom above all else, and that means they aren't the easiest creatures to reign in. There is one way to gain their respect, though."

"How?" I wanted to hear more. This was an interesting topic, and I also had some other speculations which I would divulge later.

"You battle it."

I stared. "Battle it?" I asked. "You mean –?"

"Yep. There's a rule with fighting dragons – to show that you're worth their time and companionship, you have to inflict an injury on them. Just one is enough, and every Tamer that's on record did just that, probably since that was all they could manage. You can already assume how hard it is to hurt a dragon after seeing Umbraen, right?"

"Yeah." I remembered the hardness of Umbraen's scales beneath my palms. It would take a tremendous amount of energy to render them any bodily harm. "Not quite like poking a hole in a balloon, I guess." Now I realized the true nature of the scars I'd seen on both Umbraen and Akuaz.

"Yeah, well, in spite of that, there was just one of them who was able to inflict two wounds instead of one."

"Who?" I suspected I knew the answer already, but I didn't want to sound like a complete airhead, so I kept my mouth shut. There was also a possibility that I could be wrong, of course, so there was another reason for me to keep quiet.

"I'll give you two hints. He's one of the last three in the decade, and I'm looking at him," he narrowed down in a light tone, like he was trying to avoid making me look like an idiot but unable to help it besides.

"Well, ha, ha," I said, rolling my eyes. "It kinda figures, actually, after your telling of how I supposedly did all these things…which brings me to my next question."

"Which is?"

"From what I understand after everything that I heard from you, you're saying that I did all of what you've said. What I'm wondering is…Why don't I remember doing any of it? I mean, I'm pretty sure that I'd have remembered dueling a _dragon_ at some point, of all things."

Sora raised a finger dramatically, then lowered it with a dubious, "That…is a discussion for another time." He looked at me apologetically. "Sorry, Xaros. I'm sure you can understand, right?"

I was about to protest, but then I sighed. "Yeah…"

Lesson of the day number five: some questions about your life are strictly confidential.

* * *

><p>When we went back up to the house it was early evening, and Roxas was nowhere in sight. Ven informed me (mostly because Sora probably already knew) that he was in their room working on something. I wondered what it was, but they didn't let me walk inside and find out.<p>

"He won't be able to concentrate with you hovering around him," Ven had explained. "He also is the only one able to work on it, so leave him alone for now."

I had no idea what he meant by that, but then again I didn't know much of what anything meant nowadays. I was used to it, but it didn't mean that I had to like it. So I conceded with good grace. Now we were lounging on the couches in the living room. Sora had gone back to his room, and Roxas was working on a project known only to these three.

"So…what're we gonna do now?" I asked.

"Hmm…" Ven mused. "I don't know. Want to spar outside?"

"Don't think that's such a good idea." I swear; these guys were not normal, in both literal and figurative senses of the phrase. What sixteen-year-old suggests sparring when asked how they want to occupy their time?

"Why not?" he argued.

"Well, I don't have practice versions of my swords, you know. What if I land a hit on you and…and you get hurt?"

Ven's face fell when he realized what I meant. "Oh," he said dejectedly. "Right. Wouldn't want me to panic again and give Roxas a heart attack, huh?"

I felt kind of guilty for bringing that up; Ven's hemophobia was a touchy subject. But I really didn't want to swing around magical knives at the moment, anyway, and there was no other way to convince him. I've had my fill of abnormal for the day.

"Sorry," I said quickly.

"No, it's fine; you're right." Ven lay down on the two-seater couch. "We could play Go Fish again."

"Sure. I'm positive that will be loads of entertainment."

"Oh, come on, Xaros; don't be such a sore loser. I honestly don't know why I always win, okay?"

I scoffed. "Right. Anyhow, what are we going to do about dinner? It's getting late."

"We could go out to a buffet or something. Sora can cook, probably, but I don't know if Roxas is going to give him the okay just yet." He sighed. "I'm so sick of eating his food. Next time I see half-cooked meat loaf I'm going to puke."

I couldn't really argue with him there. Roxas obviously was not the best chef in the house, and his less-than-edible culinary products only exacerbated the assumption.

"Not gonna argue with that," I agreed.

"Hey, why _don't_ we go out for dinner?" Ven suggested, suddenly sitting up with his eyes bright. "We could use a change in the menu. I bet that even Roxas will cave. He doesn't deny that his food sucks."

It was starting to sound tempting, but unlikely, to me. Roxas wasn't a pushover when it came to things like this; that much I knew. Still, since it was getting late and we hadn't really done anything productive, it really was inviting.

"Well, why not?" I grinned. "We could all use a breather."

It took some convincing (especially on Roxas's part) but we managed to get the two of them to agree on a night out. The only issue had been to decide where to go, and we didn't have a whole lot of options to begin with – Roxas had qualified that we needed to go somewhere low-budget, not crowded, and small (because Sora was still on the mend, he could get hurt again, yadda yadda). By this time I had wanted to whack him upside the head for being such a wet blanket, but Sora interjected just as I was planning on raising my arm to hit him by saying that Roxas shouldn't be so concerned; it was only going to be for a few hours at the most, and being at a good restaurant with lots of people wasn't necessarily going to land him six feet underground since as a general rule, restaurants were where people went to enjoy good food, not sign their death warrant.

I was frustrated. Sora always interrupted before something bad was going to happen between the four of us _right_ before it occurred. It was like he could predict the future, which was entirely possible. I didn't get to exact my revenge, no matter how small, whenever he was around. I had no idea why he couldn't just let me get one hit in, but unfortunately, I was pretty sure he had good reason to, and I didn't want to trigger Sora's temper, in any case.

"Okay, fine," Roxas finally caved after much pressuring. "Just don't blame me if something bad happens."

I should've known that something always bad happens with the four of us. Especially with me involved.

* * *

><p>The restaurant was low-key. Nothing too fancy, but not too shabby either. It was a low brick building that looked like it had been refurbished after it had been worn with age, and the name of it was in such loopy calligraphy that I couldn't read it, but it seemed like an Italian place, which was just great since food from that place was way too starchy for me. There were several benches right outside the building with those huge plastic parasols that never actually fended off the sunlight or the weather conditions completely. From the exceedingly small crowd, I guessed that the business was going slow that day.<p>

"Italian food? Really?" Ven said jauntily. "Awesome!"

"We can't go extravagant here, Ven. We don't have all the money in the world, you know," Roxas pointed out.

"Who said I wanted to? I just want all the garlic breadsticks that we can get. I swear I could live off that stuff."

"And die off of them, too," Roxas snickered, but Ven didn't hear, since we'd walked in and multiple conversations were buzzing about the place.

"Sora, can we not pay anything while we eat here? I mean, I can convince them that we're people who don't need to pay." There was a mischievous edge to his tone, and from the way Sora rolled his eyes I assumed that this wasn't the first time Ven had pulled his "make-them-believe-anything-I-want" card.

"Ven, if we do that we're going to be fined otherwise. I know you can let it wear off when you want it to, but I don't think we should take the risk here. You never know who is listening, okay? We're paying like everyone else. No arguments." Sora then gave him a steely look that said that he would get into big trouble if he resisted.

"Okay, okay," Ven said, breathing a sigh of annoyance. "I didn't mean to suggest it in that way though."

"Uh-huh."

"I'm serious!"

"Yeah," Sora said, scoffing. "Sure. Whatever."

"Um, in or out?" I broke in, partly because I was genuinely curious and partly because I didn't want to wait any longer for food.

"Out," Roxas said promptly. "We could actually have some fresh air. I don't like it in here. It's really stuffy."

For the first time today we all agreed with no arguments, and decided to grab a table outside. After deciding what to eat from the overhead menu, Ven and I left to save a spot while Roxas and Sora stayed behind to pay for the four of us.

"You serious about the breadsticks?" I asked as we walked around looking for the table that didn't look as if it would collapse when a puppy sat on it.

"Serious as a heart attack," he replied, testing a bench that lurched dangerously sideways. "You don't want it, and it'll end up in my stomach one way or the other. They're that delicious."

"Why do you like such strong-flavored foods? Don't you get sick of it?"

"Heh, no way." His eyes twinkled as he narrowly avoided a stray piece of plastic from the table on his immediate right. "I can honestly live off just breadsticks. I'd like to try but Sora won't let me. He says it's not good for my health, or something similar."

We lapsed into silence as we continued to test the tables. After over two full minutes of searching and test-sitting, we managed to find the least rusty table at the end of the court. At least it didn't threaten to break under our combined weight. A group of three people passed me as they entered the restaurant. I could've sworn one of them had been staring at me, but I didn't pay much attention to it; I was too preoccupied with calling Ven over as he was trying vainly to screw on a rusty bolt that had fallen off the bench he'd been sitting on. We sat down and continued our conversation.

"Honestly, I don't blame him there," I picked up where we left off. "Carbs from Italian food aren't exactly a fit body's best friend."

Ven shrugged. "So? They're completely worth it."

"Personally, I don't agree."

Suddenly he tensed.

"What?" I asked, but he motioned for me to keep my voice down.

"It's too quiet," Ven noticed nervously. "And it shouldn't be taking the two of them this long to pay for our food. There weren't a whole lot of people inside."

I realized that he was right. The faint buzz of murmuring voices that had emanated from within the walls of the brick building had ceased, and Sora and Roxas hadn't come out yet. Three more people had gone in since we had arrived here; shouldn't there have been more conversations going on?

Before I could get a syllable out, Ven yelled, "Xaros, duck!" and shoved my head down to an inch from the table just as the window next to us exploded into tiny translucent shards of glass in a deafening _CRASH_. The both of us ducked underneath a table for cover as the rest of the windows shattered and disintegrated. The people started screaming from inside and rushed out the doors in a stampede. In the midst of the chaos nobody noticed us taking shelter beneath the tables.

"What just happened?" I yelled to Ven over the cacophony. Glass shards were flying everywhere. I turned my back to the windows so my face wouldn't get cut.

"Another attack!" Ven shouted back, trying to shield himself from the glass with a stray plastic tray. "Someone ambushed us!"

It took a few moments before the windows stopped exploding into a million pieces and the ground was covered in crystalline dust. We crawled from underneath the tables, careful not to touch the glass with our bare hands, and straightened. My breathing was rattled. The silence after the explosion was the most frightening thing I'd experienced.

I turned to Ven, my heart filling with dread. He looked as devastated as I felt. "Sora," I said, my voice hollow. "Roxas, too."

"Inside," Ven said urgently, looking so fearful he almost looked deranged, "Hurry!"

Without hesitating, the two of us charged inside, and were met with a sickening sight.

The place was covered in rubble. The tables and chairs had been destroyed, and pieces of the furniture were lying everywhere. The majority of the light bulbs had likewise exploded and was part of the billowing cloud of dust in the facility. The few that had survived were flickering dimly. The curtains had been torn to shreds in the force of the blast. The front counter was nothing but dust, and there were scorch marks everywhere. There were blots of blood on the wall to my left, and I didn't want to know who it belonged to nor could I let Ven see lest he got caught in another panic attack, so I shifted my position slightly so the blood was blocked from his view. The sight certainly disturbed me, but was nothing compared to when I laid eyes on the ones who had caused it. It was the same three people that had walked in earlier, in ensembles much too familiar: the black cloak, the red shoulder plate. It was _them_ again.

Standing in front of where the counter had been, encased in a huge transparent bubble, were Sora and Roxas. Roxas was holding up a hand, like he was trying to ward them off. He appeared strained; he was pale and beads of sweat were running down his face. Sora's expression was that of shock, anger, and concern. The area of the floor around them was completely free of debris.

The bubble vanished, and Roxas fell to one knee, breathing hard. Sora bent over his brother protectively, glaring at their attackers. If the two of them noticed us, they gave no indication of it. They probably wanted to keep their attention on themselves.

"You bastards!" Sora shouted, his face flushed in his rage. "You involved innocent humans in your attack! Leave them out of it! It's just me you want!"

"Clever young man," one of them said. I couldn't tell who it was since their backs were to us. He sounded older, like an adult. "And don't get us wrong, lad; we didn't want to attract all this attention from these humans, either. But this was the perfect opportunity for us – you had let your guard down and we were able to launch our attack without any of you noticing. But him" – the one in the middle pointed to Roxas, and his voice dripped with distaste – "that boy was the only upset. If it weren't for him, we would have succeeded!" he spat, slicing his hand through the air. "I would've gladly put the lives of the humans at stake to see that boy dead! He has interfered with us all too often, in our attempts to eliminate you! You and that accursed Fataliaque, you who stand in the way of our Master's triumph!"

The back of my neck prickled; I'd heard that term refer to me once before – in the dream I had, in which Silfur had called me the same thing. What was a Fataliaque? And why did they want me dead so badly? I didn't even know of their existence until recently.

"That's not my problem," Sora answered heatedly, balling his fists. "The only triumph he will ever hope to experience is his life being spared by my hand! And I don't see any chances of that happening in the future! He is nothing but a senile bastard who is ignorant of the source of true power! Filth like him cannot be allowed to live!"

"Arrogant boy!" a second voice shouted; this voice sounded female. The figure on the immediate left of the middle one took a step forward threateningly. "You dare mock the Master? I should kill you right now!"

"Go ahead and try," he growled, as his silver blade appeared in his hand once more in a flash of blue. "It'll be the last fight you'll ever pick." Its gems glowed, and I could feel its aura of power even from where I was standing. The three of them staggered back several steps as the energy radiating from Sora's weapon assaulted them. For some reason it didn't affect Roxas, whose face was actually getting less pale by the second. The color seemed to be coming back to his face, but he stayed down, feigning exhaustion. I wondered what they had in mind.

I turned to my right, where Ven was standing. His expression was one of vigilance and torment; he looked like he was dying to help his brothers despite knowing it was forbidden, but also seemed to be waiting for something at the same time. The wave of energy didn't seem to have an effect on him, either.

"You…you won't get the best of me, heathen!" With a strangled battle cry, the female charged at Sora, unsheathing a scimitar of wickedly sharp steel from her belt at blinding speed. The other two were still immobilized.

I was about to shout out a warning to Sora, but he didn't need it. In one swift motion, he deftly knocked Roxas out of the way and parried her oncoming blow before knocking it aside. He attacked her first this time, forcing her to block the swing. The two exchanged several blows, but it was clear to me that the woman was having a hard time defending herself. Sora blocked her last strike, and then managed to push her back several steps. She leapt back and distanced herself from him and his sword. Her body shook with what I took to be anger.

"God dammit! Die, you flea-bitten dog!" She advanced on him again with alarming speed.

Just as quickly, Sora ducked, got under her guard, and jabbed her in the gut with the butt of his sword. The woman slumped to the floor with a faint moan. I stood there open-mouthed. He did all that without the slightest change in expression.

Just before I was ready to start feeling relieved, the third advanced on him just moments after the woman went down. My hope plummeted further when Sora's sword vanished and he staggered, catching himself against the wall while clutching his abdomen. He was still somewhat impaired from his previous stab wound, and fending off the woman must have had taken most of the energy he could muster.

The first of the three let out a merciless cackle. He didn't even heed his comrade who had just been felled by Sora. "Well, well, seems like the mighty Liberator has run out of steam! You won't last long. That fool of an upstart Nakhom may not have finished the job, but he served his purpose in making this venture one of less obstruction by forcing you to smite your own body. Your faithful little Guardian is too weak to help you now!"

"Rrgh…" Sora could only watch vigilantly as the last warrior closed in on him; this one wielded nunchucks made of a shiny, black material bound together not by chains, but strings of energy. I didn't see how Sora would fare against him without the weapon or the energy he needed to defend himself. The third of the ambush party raised his weapon –

"_Ven! Now!_" Roxas screamed, and Ven didn't waste a second. In a blaze of green a three-foot-long silver boomerang appeared in his right hand and he threw it before I could take a good look at it. It weaved around the two that were still standing with blinding speed, who were stunned with the sudden acknowledgement of our presence. A trail of green light that was left in the weapon's wake created a glowing emerald web which surrounded our accosters. The boomerang returned to Ven's left hand, de-materialized in a flash of jade and, spinning around, Ven yanked both of his arms inward, crossed before his face. The green net of energy immediately tightened, immobilizing their opponents. I noticed that the threadlike green trails weren't trails at all, but actual bonds that had streamed out of the weapon. I could only stand there and watch, appalled at the level of skill that he'd just displayed.

"I've got you!" Ven stayed in the position to keep the energy thread taut. "No more funny business. Try anything, I'll pull this thread and slice you to ribbons. I don't need to look back at you to know if you're trying." He then called out to Roxas, "Roxas, they're secured! Get Sora!"

Roxas immediately rushed to Sora's side, but then called back, "What about you?"

"I'll be fine! Just make sure that Sora doesn't get hurt! I know you're good at that!"

Roxas hesitated, but proceeded to erect the transparent bubble from before, which must've been a force field. Now properly guarded, Sora summoned his sword once more, and the energy that emanated from it was kept within the barrier. Since I saw that it had given energy back to Roxas before, I could guess what they were bracing themselves for.

"You!" the leader snarled, straining against his bonds to no avail. "How long have you been standing there?"

"From the start. Turns out that my brothers did a pretty good job keeping your attention from turning to us. You know, your leader seems to have nothing else in interest other than wanting my brothers and the 'Fataliaque' dead." A shock ran through me when he said that. "Something is going on, isn't it? Something that he is trying to keep in the dark. What is it?"

"It is no concern of yours!" he snapped. "The Master's business is his alone! And I will not be restrained by a mere child!" He fought even harder, but Ven only tightened the bonds, causing them to cry out.

"I think you just have been," Ven said. "As long as I'm around, you won't be killing anyone. Especially any member of my family or the only hope against you tyrants!" With that he clenched his hands into fists, and the trapped assassins screamed in pain as they were enveloped by emerald-colored bolts of electricity. It stopped after several seconds.

"Why you…!" he wheezed, and turned his head to glare at him with venom, but he noticed me first.

"Th-the Fataliaque!" he gasped, forgetting about Ven. "I thought he was – !"

"'Fataliaque'?" Ven asked slowly, turning to face me. "What are you talking about?"

"No!" he cried, frantic now. He completely disregarded Ven's words. "No, he shouldn't be alive! How is he still among the living? It's not possible!"

"What are you saying?" Ven demanded. "Answer me!" He unleashed the volts of electricity again causing them to shriek in pain. I wanted to claw at my ears to block out the horrible sound, but I couldn't move for fear.

"That – that boy – he should be dead – we'd heard that – that he'd doomed himself by his own volition – that boy shouldn't be alive – he can't be!"

I didn't understand what he'd been rambling on about. I never remembered actually trying to kill myself, though I couldn't deny that I had entertained the thought multiple times.

For the first time in the conflict, the third assassin spoke up. "I tried to warn you, Tamash!" he cried. His voice sounded young, like a teenager's or a young adult's. Tamash must've been the leader guy's name. "I told you he was still alive! I told you I saw him outside the building, but you kept saying that I was mistaken and now we're paying for it! Ahkma is fallen and the Fataliaque's alive, and now the Master's cause is doomed!"

"FOOL!" Tamash thundered. "Have you lost your faith by mere coincidence? The Master's cause will never be lost! He may be still alive, but he can still be eliminated with time!"

"Xaros!" Ven turned his head to face me, and his face was livid with fury. "What are they rambling about?" he pressed impatiently. "Is it true then? Are you the Fataliaque?"

"I – I don't – I don't know what they're talking about!" I managed to get out, desperation tinged in my tone. Ven's frenzied expression frightened me. "I don't know what a Fataliaque is! It – it's the honest truth!" It was true…part of it, at least.

"Ven!" I was shocked to hear Sora's voice echo across the ruined building. I'd almost forgotten about his presence. His voiced was pinched, but he still cried out, "Don't press him for questions! I'll explain everything later!"

"Explain what?" he spat, his face flushing in anger. "I already know! You knew all this time, didn't you? You knew this whole time that Xaros was the Fataliaque! And you kept it a secret from us! _All of us! Why?_" He clenched his fists once more and once more the assassins' bodies were wracked by a million volts of energy. He didn't look back at his elder brother once in his tirade. "You didn't tell Xaros, either, did you? You kept it from him, from us!" He screamed in frustration. "I just don't know anymore! I can't take it! I thought you trusted us! Xaros should've been the first to know since it concerns him! But no, you kept quiet about it, and for the good of what? There were two attempts on his life ever since we took him in, and both times I nearly lost both of you! What good did keeping quiet do? Nothing!" He pulled the ethereal strings tighter still, and the assassins screamed at the top of their lungs in sheer agony, but Ven didn't seem to care. He was too consumed by the sense of hate and betrayal that stemmed from Sora. If Ven went on like this, he could seriously hurt himself, both physically and mentally, and might even end up a murderer. But I didn't know what to do to stop him.

"Stop it, Ven!" This time it was Roxas who had shouted out to him, and I was startled to see him sprint over to where we were, leaving Sora unguarded. Without hesitation, he wrapped his arms around Ven, who froze in shock.

"Ven, you've got to stop this." Roxas's voice cracked in fear and tears ran down his cheeks. "You'll kill them if you keep going on like this! Let them go; they won't try and kill us now. Please, Ven…let them go. I'm sure Sora had his reasons for keeping it from us! We couldn't do anything about that! Let it go! Free them, Ven…I… I don't want to see you like this! Please, you've got to stop!"

At first, Roxas's words didn't seem to register with Ven. But slowly, his face hardened in regret, and he lowered his arms, the threads disappearing. I could see –beneath Roxas's arms – that his arms were shaking, with effort or emotion I couldn't discern.

The two men collapsed at the sudden lack of restraint. They appeared stunned, as if they couldn't believe that they were actually free. Before they could make a move, Sora brandished his sword at them and gave them a glare so frightening that it would send even a dragon running for the hills. I could see why the faction would want Sora dead so badly.

"Don't you dare show your faces to us again," he threatened menacingly. "Take the wench and get lost. If I ever lay eyes on you for a second time, I swear that it'll be the last day you'll ever see."

The two of them didn't need any more prodding. Even the leader stumbled in his panic to get out of the ruined restaurant, leaving his assistant to drag the girl along with him as quickly as he could. He gave one last terrified look behind his back towards us before he too vanished from sight.

Pretty soon we were left alone, and time seemed to have stopped the minute the danger had passed.

Sora was still at the ruins of the counter, sword in hand; I was still frozen in fear; and Roxas was still hugging his brother, who still hadn't moved.

I jerked my head to face forward, and Sora's countenance was somber, and he covered his face with his free hand.

"Ven…I'm so sorry." His tone was more than apologetic – it was downright remorseful. He was regretting not telling them the bulk of the truth earlier, and beating himself up over it. I didn't know what I should feel about that, since my feelings were completely jumbled up at the moment.

I forced myself to look over at the twins, but the sight wasn't any better. Roxas still hadn't let go. He noticed me watching and locked eyes with me. He seemed completely terrified and relieved at the same time; terrified at what Ven had come a hairsbreadth's close to doing and relieved that he'd managed to stop him in time. His eyes were also full of trepidation, which confused me. Maybe he was afraid that I knew more about this situation than I'd initially let on. Maybe he was nervous that Ven would push him off in anger for stopping him. Whatever it was, the fear was there.

And then there was Ven himself.

His expression was a conflict of a variety of emotions, ranging from hate to remorse to hurt. I could see a tear glistening on the one eye that I could see, illuminated by the dim light of the overhead lamps. I didn't know what caused it, but I had a feeling that I didn't need a definite answer.

Another perfectly normal day gone wrong, and all because of the one person who had been the target: me.

* * *

><p><strong><em>Long chapter, isn't it? I would have split this into two chapters, but then they would end up being too short, so here it is in one easy-serving jumbo package. Hope you liked it.<em>**

**_Yes, you see a lot of the brothers hugging each other (and you'll see more of it in the future), and it's not just because I'm a sap, all right? (No, I'm not a yaoi fan either.) As you (should) have read earlier, family is a very important element where they're from, and they're very close to each other. And not to mention they go through a whole bunch of life-threatening situations, so it's only natural to have a close bond._**

**_Is Ven overreacting? Possibly. But he does kind of have a temper similar to Sora's, and the secret Sora had been keeping __was__ a pretty big deal. But make of it what you will._**

**_Anyway. Ven and Roxas find out that Sora had been keeping a very important secret from them, something that didn't sit well with Ven at all. Is he angry at Sora for keeping something so imperative a secret all this time? Or is he willing to let it slide because he knows Sora always has a good enough reason to do such things? Only time and next chapter will tell._**


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